Hope Floats
by Mahone-chic-89
Summary: DEADLIEST CATCH: When tragedy strikes the Northwestern, a certain young female skipper steps in to help but is faced with opposition. Griffin begins to rebel, but this time for a good reason. SEQUEL TO ALL IN THE FAMILY
1. Prologue

_**Hope Floats**_

**This is a sequel to All in the Family!!**

**My muses are going insane!! I've had so many great ideas form you guys that I don't know what to do!! Lol! I got another idea too, I just hope you all don't hate me after this chapter!! : (**

**So anyways, I decided to go ahead and start this one. I might not be able to update it everyday because I'm making Real Life the priority at the moment. **

**PLEASE don't have me after this!!**

**Disclaimer: this is FICTION so everything that takes place hasn't happened and Lord willing, some of them will never happen (knock on wood). So don't worry, this first chapter is PURE fiction and did NOT happen (KNOCK ON WOOD!). **

Prologue

Two weeks after the close of the King Crab season…

The crew of the Northwestern stood outside in the bitter cold in Dutch Harbor, huddling under their black coats and leaning on one another for support.

Jack had tears falling freely down her face as she leaned on Edgar. He was shaking slightly, but not from the cold. His eyes were glazed over with emotion as unbearable pain radiated from them.

Sig was looking down at the ground, his heart heavy with the turn of events. Emotion clogged his throat, making it hard to breath.

The snow was pelting down, covering the ground around their feet. A man was talking but no one paid him much attention. Their minds and eyes were else ware.

Griffin shuddered and glanced over at his mom. She was holding onto Sig, her face buried in his black, felt-like jacket. Sig had one arm around her, the other covering his mouth.

Griffin felt a sudden wave of anger hit him. It was so unfair! Things like this should never happen to people…not here on the docks. Things like this were freak accidents that happened out on the Bering Sea, not safe in the harbor.

He fell from a stack of pots…no one heard…no one saw…until it was too late.

The frigid waters of the harbor claimed him before they knew what had happened.

Edgar had been the one to leap into the dark water after him. He pulled him onto the dock with the help of the rest of the crew and they tried to get him breathing again. They checked for a pulse and any signs of life, but there were none.

Jake Anderson was gone.

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**Oh my gosh I'm crying like a baby writing this and hitting wood so very hard!! **

**PLEASE don't hate me!! I LOVE Jake, trust me…I'm in love with the guy…it's just for the story's sake. **


	2. Chris Cotter

**Author's Note: The name of the girl and the boat came from "The Perfect Storm" book. Just FYI…and I named one of the other characters Ashley for my Ashley friends in the forum!! : )**

Chapter 1:Chris Cotter

"Are you going to keep whining or are you going to shut up and do you job?" shouted a very irate woman.

She was leaning out the wheelhouse window and practically cursing out one of her deckhands. She was a greenhorn captain on a brand new boat about to head out into the Bering Sea for the Opillio crab season. She grew up fishing with her dad in North Carolina in the Atlantic Ocean and dreamed of one day joining the Bering Sea fleet. Her dream had come true a few years later when a boat owner offered to sell her his boat. With her father's help, they took out a loan and purchased the vessel.

The Hannah Boden was a one-hundred and twenty eight foot, house-forward fishing vessel. It was a deep, almost burgundy red and had black trim. She was a pretty boat sitting amongst the more worn and beaten Bering Sea vessels and she caught quite a bit of attention. Although the attention wasn't so much due to the fact that she was a new vessel, but that her captain was a woman and so was half of her crew.

"Ashley, are you listening to me?" snapped Chris as she brushed her long, straight black hair out of her eyes.

Ashley rolled her eyes and exchanged a look with her friend, Billy.

"You'd better answer her," laughed Billy, "She'll drop you like an overdone turkey if you don't!"

Daniel nodded in agreement as he and the other two deckhands, Carter and Sasha, appeared.

"Yeah, girl answer the woman before she beats us all to death!" he said with a laugh.

Ashley muttered something under her breath before she raised her voice so her captain could hear her.

"I'm doing my job!" she yelled, anger in her voice.

"Then stop moaning to the rest of your crew!" retorted Chris, "I'm not putting up with that crap! You'll be on bait duty till the day you die if you don't knock it off!"

Chris slammed her wheelhouse window shut and grumbled angrily to herself. She was stressed beyond words and was beginning to wonder if this was such a good idea after all. Most of her crew was experienced and knew what they were doing. Ashley was the only true greenhorn, although technically they all were at this point. The Hannah Boden had never been out to sea before so anyone on her was a greenhorn to the boat, herself.

With another sigh, Chris decided to head into town for a drink or two. She could use some time away from the boat. They had one week left till the season started and she had a lot of work to do between now and then, but she also could use a break.

"Watch the boat while I'm gone, Billy," she said as she jumped onto the dock.

Billy was the senior deckhand and the most experienced. He had been on three other boats in his past and had a calm and cheerful disposition, much unlike her own. She knew from the day she met him that he would make a great deck boss.

"Aye aye captain!" he said as he saluted, trying to get a laugh out of their tightly wound captain.

"Ha ha very funny," said Chris with a smirk as she turned to leave.

The amusement in her brilliant blue eyes was satisfactory for Billy. He smiled and turned back to face his crew.

"Alright, you heard the lady! Billy's the boss now, so you ladies better start haulin'…"

…

Chris opened the door to the Elbow Room and was surprised to find it rather quiet and empty. Only two people were in the bar, one being Danni the Elbow Room's owner. The other was a young man around her age, sitting in the far corner with a despairing look in his eyes.

"Hey Chris," greeted Danni, "How's it going?"

Chris sighed, "Not good."

"The other captains' not getting along with you still?"

Chris grimaced at that. Since the day she arrived two weeks ago, not a single Bering Sea captain had approached her. Instead they kept her at a distance and gave her disapproving looks. It was obvious to her how they felt about a woman being captain of a fishing boat.

"I'm pretty sure they all hate my guts," replied Chris as she sank onto a bar stool.

"Well it could be worse," muttered Danni as she cast a swift look in the young man's direction.

Chris followed her line of sight and gazed at the man.

"What's up with him?" she asked quietly.

"The Northwestern lost one of their crew members a few days ago," said Danni, a deeply sad look entering her eyes, "Jake Anderson fell off a stack of pots. They think his head hit the dock on his way down…that's why he didn't call for help. No one noticed he was gone until Sig Hansen's youngest brother saw Jake…he went in after him but it was too late."

Chris shook her head in despair. She couldn't imagine what that must feel like…to lose a deckhand like that.

"So I'm assuming he's one of the crew?" she asked.

"He's Sig's son."

Chris' eyes grew wide with astonishment.

"_Sig Hansen's_ son?" she asked, "Are you serious?"

Danni nodded, "Yeah…he's not doing so well. He's been coming in here every day since the accident."

Chris glanced back over at the young man. He was quite handsome…he obviously took after his father. He had blonde, slightly wavy hair and crystal blue eyes.

"Maybe he needs someone to talk to," murmured Chris as she stood up and walked over to him.

Griffin looked up when he saw the woman walking towards him. He had seen her come in and was rather taken by her. She had beautiful long, dark hair, nice figure, and cutting blue eyes. She looked every bit as tough as the guys he worked with.

He watched as she sat down in the seat across from him.

"Hi," she said as she gazed at him.

"Hi," he muttered.

"I'm Chris Cotter…captain of the Hannah Boden. I'm sure you've heard about me," she said with a glint of resentment in her eyes, "It seems like I'm the talk of the town."

Griffin gave her a sad smile.

"Yeah…Dad doesn't like you too much. He says women shouldn't be skippers."

"Oh really?" asked Chris, eyes flashing slightly.

Griffin smirked a little, "Yeah but I don't agree with him."

Chris raised an eyebrow, "Is that so?"

"You look like you could handle just about anything."

Chris smiled, "Yeah we'll see about that I guess…thanks."

"For what?"

"For at least having a little faith in me…its more than anyone else has given me."

Griffin smiled slightly as he felt a warm feeling growing inside of him. This woman was beautiful and there was something else about her that got to him.

"So…how are you holding up?"

Chris almost regretted the question when she saw the look on Griffin's face. He glanced away and swallowed.

"Oh…you heard I guess…um, not too good to be honest. Jake…was a good friend and a great deckhand. Edgar's taking it badly."

"Edgar?"

"Edgar Hansen…my dad's youngest brother and my uncle."

Chris nodded, "I'm so sorry to hear that. Things like that shouldn't happen to people."

Griffin glanced up at her and nodded, "Yeah…that's what I said. I've been more angry than upset…my dad's worried about me. He says I'm not acting right and if I can't get myself together then I can't go out for Opie season."

"Anger's a natural reaction for some people," said Chris, "It's actually kind of healthy to feel angry about it. I know I'd be cursing and hitting things left and right if I was in your position. I guess it's a Norwegian thing, huh?"

"You're Norwegian?" asked Griffin in surprise.

"Yeah…I don't look it, I know. But I'm Norwegian, one hundred percent!"

Griffin smiled and nodded, "Oh I see it now…you have that Norwegian attitude."

"What's that supposed to mean?" exclaimed Chris.

Griffin laughed and leaned back in his chair.

Danni looked up when she heard Griffin laughing. She smiled to herself as she watched them interact with one another. No one had gotten Griffin to talk much or even smile but this woman was making him open up and laugh.

"Told you!" said Griffin, "You're a fighter…I can see it in your eyes and hear it in your voice."

Chris narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest as she leaned back in her chair, causing Griffin to laugh more.

"Aw, now don't get all offended," he said as he leaned forward, "I'm sorry…I was just playing."

Chris smirked, "Yeah I know. You're Norwegian too…and you're a Hansen. I know how you are."

Just then, the door opened and Sig Hansen strolled into the Elbow Room. He glanced around and relaxed when he saw Griffin.

"I've been looking everywhere for you!" he exclaimed.

"Dad I come here everyday," muttered Griffin.

Sig suddenly noticed Chris. He froze in mid-step and gave her a hard stare.

Chris narrowed her eyes and stood up.

"Guess that's my queue to leave," she said with an edge to her voice.

She turned around and glanced at Griffin.

"Nice talking to you. I'll see you around."

"No…I don't think you will," said Sig as he stepped in front of her.

Chris glared at the older Norwegian captain.

"And why not?" she demanded.

"Come on Griffin," said Sig, not acknowledging her question, "Let's go."

Chris watched them leave, a feeling of anger and hurt rising in her chest.

Griffin mouthed the words: I'm sorry as he walked out of the building.

Chris hit the table and stormed out the other entrance, suddenly feeling the need for a long walk down the docks…

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	3. Edgar and Jack Hansen

**Thanks for all the reviews!! I'm sorry to upset some of you with that first chapter. I know, it seriously bothered me too…I was crying and I was the one writing it!! Needless to say I knocked on every piece of wood in my house!!**

**Disclaimer: I forgot to mention this earlier, but the title of the story is also the title of a movie. I never saw it but apparently my mom tivoed it and I was searching tivo while I was trying to come up with a name for the story and saw it. So yeah, its not my title, never seen the movie…its not about boats so I wasn't interested, just like the title cause its rather fitting for my storyline. Okay, I think that's it! Now…on with chapter 2!**

Chapter 2: Edgar and Jack Hansen

Chris huddled under her light weight jacket as she cursed quietly in Norwegian.

The sun was beginning to set on Dutch Harbor and deckhands began to finish up their work for the day.

Chris knew that she should be heading back to her boat to check on her crew, but she was too angry to do that just yet and she didn't want to take out her frustration on them…again.

Sig Hansen had struck a nerve in her that made her want to scream with fury. She was getting sick of the stares and the comments about her. So what if she was a girl? Did that really matter? Did that make her any worse of a captain?

She kicked a rock and watched it skitter along the docks. With a sigh, she glanced around her, surprised to see how far she had come. She was at the other side of the docks where the more famous and prestigious boats were stationed. The Cornelia Marie was tied up a few feet ahead of her and the Northwestern was sitting behind them. Across from those vessels were the Time Bandit and the Wizard. A little further down the docks sat the Rollo, the Aleutian Ballad, the Farwest Leader, and the Maverick.

"Edgar where you going?" shouted an all-too-familiar voice.

Chris stiffened and looked down the docks to see Sig sticking his head out the wheelhouse window and yelling at a younger man walking away from the boat.

"Just going for a walk," he said, sounding defensive.

Sig closed the wheelhouse window without responding. Edgar shook his head and muttered something in Norwegian.

"Yeah that's what I said a few minutes ago."

Edgar jumped when he heard her voice.

"Oh, sorry," said Chris, "I didn't mean to startle you. I was just taking a walk and overheard what you said."

Edgar gave her a look.

"Who are you and what are you doing at the docks?" he asked, curtly.

Chris fought back the urge to jump into her defensive mode.

"I'm Chris Cotter…captain of the Hannah Boden," she said, keeping her voice neutral.

"Oh…so you're the one everybody's talking about?"

Chris frowned and kicked another loose stone.

"Yeah I suppose so," she muttered crossly.

"What are you doing on this end of the dock? Isn't your boat on the other end?"

"Yeah…I was just angry and decided to take a walk," she replied, her voice tense, "I didn't realize I had come this far. I had a little run in with your brother and nephew at the Elbow Room."

Edgar raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sure that went well," he said as he started to walk past her.

"Can I walk with you?" asked Chris.

Edgar turned around and gave her a long look. She looked depressed and her eyes gleamed with desperation to prove herself to the other boats. He felt a wave of sympathy hit him.

"Yeah, I guess," he muttered.

Chris brightened slightly and fell in step beside of him.

"I talked to Griffin for a while before Sig came in," she said after a moment.

Edgar glanced at her, "What'd you talk about?"

"Jake."

Edgar stopped walking altogether. He shot her an angry look and Chris froze.

"I'm sorry…he just needed to talk to someone," she said, suddenly wishing she hadn't said a word about Jake Anderson, "He was upset…I'm sorry, I didn't mean any harm."

She glanced away uneasily and shuffled her feet in the crusty snow on the dock.

Edgar gritted his teeth and looked away as emotion threatened to overwhelm him again. Jake had been more than just another deckhand…he had been his best friend. They grew closer and closer during the seasons and even hung out a lot during the off-season. When he died Edgar felt like a part of him had died too.

"No…don't apologize," he said quietly, "He needed someone to talk to…I'm glad he felt comfortable enough to talk to you."

Edgar started walking again and Chris followed, her heart heavy for this poor, emotionally battered crew.

After walking for several moments in silence, Chris stopped.

"This is my boat," she said quietly.

Edgar was a few feet ahead of her, but stopped when he heard what she said. He glanced over at the boat and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Wow…she really is new isn't she?" he asked as he noted the fresh paint and clean hull.

"Yeah…it's her maiden voyage," replied Chris, "It's mine too, really. I've never been a captain of a Bering Sea crab boat before."

Edgar nodded as he studied the boat. From what he could tell it was rather similar to the Northwestern. It was a house-forward boat and the deck was laid out in the same fashion.

"You want to take a look around?" offered Chris as she jumped onto the boat.

Edgar raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"You'd let another deckhand from another boat onto yours?"

She shrugged, "Why not? The crew's out partying so no one's here."

Edgar glanced around uneasily and stepped into the boat.

"Come on into the galley," said Chris, "I'll make us some coffee."

Edgar followed her uneasily. He could only imagine what the rest of his crew would say if they knew he was on this boat…especially his oldest brother.

Chris walked over to the table and sat down two mugs.

"Thanks," muttered Edgar as he took a sip.

"Sure, no problem," replied Chris as she sat down across from him, "Okay…now talk."

Edgar narrowed his eyes.

"Talk?"

"You have that same look Griffin did. It seems to me like your crew hasn't really talked about the accident."

"We haven't," said Edgar quietly, "It's not the best topic of conversation."

"Yeah but it's the healthiest," said Chris, "And you look like you need a good long talk."

"No offence, but why would I talk to you?"

Chris smiled, "Because I'm not one of your family members or crew members. You don't have to put up with me for five months. You say what you need to say and then you leave…just like that."

Edgar hesitated.

"And whatever you say is confidential, I promise," added Chris.

"So…are you some kind of psychologist too now?" asked Edgar with a smirk.

Chris smiled and shrugged, "I'm multi-talented what can I say?"

Edgar smiled slightly and sighed.

"Okay…well, it sucks."

"There's a start," said Chris as she took a sip of coffee, "Griffin says you were the one to jump into the water. Why don't you tell me about that?"

Edgar's eyes glazed over with fear, panic, and horror as he mentally re-lived the moments of that dreadful morning.

"We were chaining up the stack…and Jake was working up there for awhile. He left to get something and came back. We were all busy so I guess we didn't pay much attention. I turned around and asked Jake to hand me something…and he wasn't there."

Edgar paused and cleared his throat as he felt the emotion building.

"I…I leaned over the stack to look down at the dock, thinking he hadn't come back yet. But when I did…I saw him in the water. He…he was between the dock and the boat…and he wasn't moving."

Chris' eyes were beginning to tear up as she listened to Edgar. The range of emotions that played across his face illustrated the horror of the event. Her eyes remained riveted to his face as she hugged her jacket to her body, as much to get away from the cold as to prepare herself for what she knew was coming next.

"I jumped in…and I grabbed him. The other guys started yelling and climbed off the stack. Sig ran out of the wheelhouse and everyone gathered on the dock to help me lift him out. We did…and then we began CPR. I swear we did it for an hour…at least it felt that long. Sig's wife and Griffin were standing there…and the looks on their faces…the crew…we, we just knew. We knew…we knew he was gone…"

Edgar couldn't keep up the wall anymore. His emotion got the best of him and he tears began to fall down his face.

Chris was crying silently as well, her heart hurting for the crew of the Northwestern and the poor young deckhand.

Edgar put his fist against his mouth and squeezed his eyes shut as all of his sorrow for Jake began to come out onto the surface. Chris moved over next to him and wrapped her arms around him.

"I'm so sorry," she murmured as she rubbed his back comfortingly, "I'm so, so sorry…"

A few minutes later they heard someone shouting from the dock.

"Edgar!"

Edgar froze, a look of fear crossing his face.

"Oh no," he muttered.

Chris recognized the voice too and moaned.

"Why is he here?" she muttered irritably.

"Looking for me," said Edgar as he wiped his eyes and regained his composure, "I've been gone for quite a while."

Chris stood up and rushed out of the galley and onto the deck. She glanced around and saw Sig further down on the docks. Another girl was with him. She looked like she was about Edgar's age and she had a very worried expression on her face.

Chris took a deep breath and called out to them.

"Captain Hansen!"

Sig whirled around at the sound of his voice. He grimaced when he saw who it was, but his expression 

grew from one of dislike to one of fury when he saw Edgar emerge from the galley and stand beside of her.

"Edgar!" shouted the woman as she ran over to him.

She threw herself into his arms and hugged him tightly.

"You had me worried sick!" she exclaimed, her eyes wet from crying.

"It's okay, Jack…I'm fine," assured Edgar, "I lost track of time, that's all."

Jack pulled away and glanced over at Chris.

"Hi," she said as she extended her hand, "I'm Jack Hansen, Edgar's wife and Northwestern deckhand."

Chris was startled to hear that Edgar's wife was a deckhand. She shot a look at Sig, wondering why he allowed a woman to work on his boat and yet disapproved of a woman being a captain.

"Um, hi," said Chris as she turned back to Jack, "I'm Chris Cotter, captain of the Hannah Boden."

"You have a beautiful boat," said Jack as she glanced around her.

"Thank you," said Chris.

Sig looked thoroughly ticked off. He stood on the dock and fidgeted irritably.

"You're welcome aboard, captain," said Chris, mustering up all the kindness she had inside of her.

Sig shot her a surprised look.

"I'm fine thanks," he said curtly.

Jack turned around and gave Sig a surprised and disappointed look.

She shot Chris an apologetic glance.

"I guess we'd better get going," she said as she rolled her eyes.

Chris caught the look and smiled slightly. At least a few of the Northwestern deckhands liked her.

"Yeah my wife cooked us some dinner on the boat," said Sig, "Salted cod."

"Your wife?" asked Chris.

Sig opened his mouth to reply, but caught the message behind Chris' questioning eyes.

"Let's go," he said abruptly.

Jack sighed in exasperation, "Can't we invite her to join us?"

If looks could kill, Jack Hansen would have dropped dead right then and there.

"Oh, it's okay…" said Chris.

"No, it's not," said Jack, not taking her eyes off of Sig.

Sig glared back at her.

"I think I'm the one who says who can and can't come on my boat," he snapped.

Jack rolled her eyes, "No…the only reason you won't let her come is because you don't want everyone else to…"

"Jack," said Sig in a warning tone.

He and Jack were always arguing about something. They had similar personalities and often clashed over certain topics, this being one of the many.

Jack shot her captain a disbelieving and angry look.

"Sorry, Chris," she said, "I'll see you around."

Chris nodded and watched as they left the boat and walked down the docks.

She sighed to herself as she turned to go back into her wheelhouse, wondering if any of the boats would ever really accept her and her crew…

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	4. Breakfast

Had some free time this afternoon so I chose to write some more. I'm going to update Real Life too in a minute!!

Chapter 3: Breakfast

The next morning Chris woke up early and watched the sun rise from her wheelhouse. She sighed and stood up, mentally preparing herself for another day in Dutch Harbor. She could not wait to get out to sea. At least out there she only had to deal with her crew and not a slew of disapproving captains.

"Hey captain!" said Billy in his normal, cheerful mood.

"Hey Billy, how's it going?" asked Chris as she turned to walk into the galley.

Billy followed her, a skip in his step and a smile on his face. Chris couldn't help but smirk at her deck boss. The world could be coming to an end and the guy would still find something to smile about.

"Great!" he said as the passed some of the other crew members, "You know what? The crew and I were thinking maybe we could all go over to the Elbow Room for breakfast."

Chris stopped in mid-step and turned around to look at Billy. The rest of the crew was either sitting down at the galley table or fixing some coffee on the counter. She looked over each of them and raised an eyebrow.

"You aren't serious?" she asked, "You actually _want_ to walk into that place? The last time we did we almost got into a fight!"

"That's because everyone was drunk," said Ashley with a smirk, "I don't think the boys will be drinking this early in the morning."

Chris frowned and ran a hand through her long black hair. Her ice-blue eyes looked worried as she glanced around at them.

"You promise?" she asked after a moment.

The crew nodded vigorously and began to give each other victorious looks.

"Alright fine, we'll go."

The cheering was almost deafening.

"I don't know why you all are so excited about it," said Chris with a frown.

"Aw, come on now Chris," said Billy as he put an arm around her shoulders, "Stop being so pessimistic! I'm sure it won't be that bad. Just give it a go!"

Chris gave him a doubtful look but nodded.

"Yeah, alright. Maybe if the other crews see us there together they'll leave us alone."

Billy's eyes gleamed excitedly.

"There's the spirit!" laughed Billy, "Now let's get outta here!"

…

Chris walked into the Elbow Room first, followed by her deck boss and the rest of the crew. They were all decked out in the Hannah Boden colors and emblem, ready to show off their pride.

Chris glanced around, feeling anxious to be in a crowded room full of captains and crew that didn't particularly care for her. But she kept a straight and determined face and held her head high. There was no reason to be ashamed of her boat or her crew. They were just as good as the next crew and she was more than ready to prove it.

Ashley pointed out an open table and the crew gathered around it to sit down.

As Chris looked around the room, she caught several angry and disapproving looks. But as she gazed at her crew, they looked absolutely thrilled to be here and seemed to ignore the glares. Chris sighed and decided to do the same. She put on a smile and laughed along with her crew as Carter told them one of his fish stories.

After a few moments, Chris began to relax. For the most part, the other crews grew bored of glaring at them and turned to mind their own business.

Just then, Danni walked over to them with a bright smile on her face, her long ponytail bobbing as she practically skipped eagerly to the table.

"Why if it isn't the crew of the Hannah Boden!" she exclaimed, causing the glares to return.

The captains and crew looked over at the table and smirked, expecting for Danni to make fun of them or kick them out of the bar.

"It's great to see you guys here!" continued Danni, "What can I get for you all this morning?"

Daniel jumped right in, always eager for food.

"I'll have the never-ending plate of pancakes please!" he said with gusto.

Billy shot him a glare, "Daniel! Ladies first!"

Daniel mumbled something under his breath while Danni smirked in amusement.

"Captain?" asked Sasha, "You go first."

"I'll have what Daniel's having," said Chris as she glanced at Daniel and gave him a wink.

Daniel seemed to perk up a bit and nodded gratefully at his captain. Although she had her moments, being Norwegian and all, she really did care about her crew and their feelings and well being.

The rest of the crew ordered their breakfast and handed the menus to Danni.

"Thanks guys," she said with a smile, "You're order will be right up!"

Carter watched Danni walk away, a wistful look in his eyes. Chris smirked and nudged him.

"Don't even think about it," she murmured, "See that blonde guy over at the bar? That's her husband…he's captain of the Maverick."

Carter's eyes grew wide with astonishment and he whistled.

"A captain? Wow…guess I'm outta luck, huh?" he asked with a slight twinkle in his eye.

Chris rolled her eyes, "Oh I'm sure you'll find someone eventually."

Carter mumbled something under his breath and sighed. Chris patted his back in a comforting gesture just as the front door opened. She glanced over to see who it was and felt her heart plummet…Sig Hansen.

"Great," she muttered.

"What?" asked Ashley, glancing between Chris and the blonde, Norwegian captain.

Chris sighed, "Oh…I think Mr. Northwestern and I got off on the wrong foot…or two."

The crew gave her questioning looks as they turned to look back at Sig.

"Well don't all of you stare at once or anything!" hissed Chris.

"Uh oh," murmured Sasha, brushing a strand of blonde hair out of her face, "Don't look now…but he's staring right at you. Well, more like _glaring_ right at you."

Chris rolled her eyes and glanced away.

"Don't mind him…I doubt he'll start something while we're all here together like this. He's alone so he doesn't have anyone to back him up."

Billy made a groaning noise in the back of his throat.

"Oh, you mean other than his entire crew? They just walked in behind him."

Chris ran a hand through her dark hair and sighed.

"Okay, nobody look at them or say a word about them from here until we leave, okay?"

She waited until she had made eye-contact with each of her crew members and they nodded their agreement.

"Everything should be fine as long as…"

"Chris!"

Chris' eyes widened in shock and the crew shot her questioning looks as a young man, closely resembling Sig Hansen, bounded over to them.

Chris turned around slowly and saw Griffin making his way over to her. Sig looked infuriated and Edgar put his head in his hands and shook his head. The rest of the Northwestern crew looked either angry and confused.

Jack Hansen was the last one to enter the room, following behind Baylee Hansen. She looked equally surprised and happy to see Chris but when she glanced over at Sig, her face fell. She glanced over at Chris and Griffin and sighed, preparing for what was bound to happen next.

"Chris! How you doing?" asked Griffin as he stood near her.

Chris stood up and held out a hand for him to shake.

"Hey Griffin…um, we're doing fine," said Chris, glancing over his shoulder and looking at Sig.

Griffin rolled his eyes at her hand and leaned forward to give her a hug. Chris was startled by it and looked back at Sig as if to say: "Hey, he did it! Not me!"

"Thanks for the other day," he murmured into her ear.

Chris smiled as he pulled away.

"Yeah, anytime," she said, struck suddenly by the intensity of his cutting blue gaze. It so closely resembled Sig's icy cold gaze, just with a happy gleam rather than an infuriated one.

"Man he's handsome," Chris thought to herself. At the same time she mentally kicked herself for even allowing such a thought to cross her mind. No matter how attractive he was, nothing could ever happen between the two of them.

"So I was wondering," said Griffin, "Are you busy tonight?"

Chris' blinked in surprise and stepped back slightly. She was definitely not expecting this.

"Um…no, not really. Why?"

"You wanna hang out or something?" asked Griffin, his eyes dancing as he gazed down at her. She was about three inches shorter than him and her beautiful figure was driving him absolutely crazy. He knew that his offer wasn't very smart, considering the status of the Northwestern's relationship with her, but he wanted so badly to just talk to her again that he couldn't help himself.

"Um, sure…yeah," said Chris, surprising herself, "Meet me at my boat tonight…around seven?"

Griffin grinned like a teenager who just discovered women, "Alright…I'll see you then. I'll…"

"No I don't think you will."

Chris stiffened instantly at the sound of Sig's voice. She glanced over Griffin's shoulder and saw him standing right behind him.

Griffin turned around and gave his dad an irritated look.

"Dad…"

"Go back to the crew," he said curtly, "They're sitting in a booth by the window."

Griffin gave his dad a hard stare. Sig inclined his head and nodded in the direction of the booth. Griffin sighed in resignation and walked away, shooting Chris a final, apologetic glance.

"Captain Hansen?" said Chris as she crossed her arms and hardened her gaze.

"I suggest you stay the hell away from my son!" he hissed angrily as he leaned closer to her.

Chris heard her crew stand up from the table behind her. She raised a hand, indicating that they stay back. The crew of the Northwestern stood up across the room when they saw the Hannah Boden crew rise to challenge their captain. They hesitated when they saw Chris call her crew off. Griffin just watched with a mixture of sadness and anger in his eyes.

"And what is it about me you hate so much?" asked Chris, keeping her voice as even as she could, "It can't be just because I'm a woman because you have a female deckhand and your wife is the boat's cook. So what is it, Captain?"

Sig looked a little taken back by her open challenge. Her blue eyes had grown a few shades darker in anger and she glared up at him, seemingly without fear.

"Why don't you go ask your father?" he snarled, suddenly angry that this little woman had gotten to him so easily.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" asked Chris, raising her voice.

Chris was particularly close to her father. He was the one that taught her to fish and to drive a boat. When her mom and older sister walked out on them, their bond only grew stronger and she was fiercely protective of him.

Sig had turned around and began to walk away when she asked the question. He didn't turn around or even acknowledge it as he walked back to his crew.

Chris reached out and grabbed his arm, causing him to tighten his muscles in anger. He glanced down at her hand and then back up at her face with a look of disbelief.

"What the hell was that supposed to mean?" she asked again, eyes flashing with anger.

Sig snarled angrily as he glanced down at her.

"Like I said…ask your father."

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	5. Daddy Dearest

Chapter 4: Daddy Dearest

Chris Cotter was furious.

How dare that man get in her face like that! Who did he think he was?

She had returned to her crew and told them that she needed to get out of the Elbow Room. She told them not to worry and to go ahead with their breakfast…she just needed some time alone to think and to call her dad.

She made her way back to the Hannah Boden and climbed up into the wheelhouse. She sank into her captain's chair with a sigh and picked up her phone. She punched in her dad's number and waited anxiously for him to pick up.

"Hello?" asked a gruff, weathered voice.

"Dad?"

"Chrissie honey!" exclaimed her dad happily, "How are you? How's the boat? How's the crew?"

She laughed at his barrage of questions.

"Dad, I'm fine, the boat's fine, and the crew's fine."

"Oh good! So…what did you call me about?"

"Does the name Sig Hansen mean anything to you?" asked Chris, chewing nervously on her fingernail.

There was a long, drawn out silence on the other end of the line followed by a deep sigh.

"That's not comforting," said Chris, darkly.

"Why do you ask, honey?"

"Why do I ask?" said Chris, starting to get agitated, "Dad the man got in my face and told me to stay clear of his son! What the hell is going on? Why did he tell me to ask you why he hates me?"

Another long pause…

"Mr. Hansen and I had a little run in a long time ago," began her dad, "I used to be a crabber too…I fished on the Bering Sea when I was a teenager…was a captain for a season. That didn't last too long."

"What?" exclaimed Chris in disbelief, "You never told me anything about fishing on the Bering Sea! Why…why would you keep that from me?"

Her dad sighed, "Because it didn't last long and it ended very badly. I made a big mistake…and the boat sank. Thank God everyone got into the life-raft and the Coast Guard was able to get to us."

Chris sat back in her chair, shell-shocked by what her dad was telling her.

"Oh my…Dad…"

"But before that," continued her father, "I was in the tavern…the Elbow Room, the old one before it was re-built and re-modeled. I was bragging about how our boat was the best in the fleet and a bunch of guys told me that there was no way we would ever beat Mr. Northwestern. He was legendary, even back then. It was like the man was psychic when it came to catching the crab. He was younger then too…and very 

defensive and prideful of his boat."

"Yeah, well that hasn't changed much," muttered Chris angrily.

Her dad sighed, "Well he overheard me bragging and came over and started trying to talk about all the great seasons the Northwestern had…about their heritage and how his boat was almost entirely made up of family members. I guess I got angry…that and the alcohol didn't help much either. I threw a punch at him just as the conversation got heated. He swung back and we got into this big bar fight. The next day I challenged him down at the docks and we got into it again. Throughout that entire season we egged each other on over the radio and pulled pranks…bad pranks, on each other. They started getting out of hand and one we pulled on him nearly took down his boat. We dragged several large blocks of concrete onto our boat…the kind of concrete blocks that hold down the buoys. We tied them together and attached them to one of his pots. When he went to haul that pot, the weight was so heavy that the boat started to list dangerously to starboard. He was screaming on the radio that they were going over and at one point we heard him issue a mayday. I looked at the GPS and saw that he was right on top of that spot where we dumped the pranked pot. Needless to say when we got back to the docks he tried to come after me. His crew held him back, but he swore that he'd never forgive me for it. He said I nearly killed all of them…and that he was going to make sure that I never got back on a crab boat ever again…and he was right. I didn't. I'm guessing that he hates you so much because he doesn't want another Cotter out there on the water. And I guess that explains why he doesn't want you anywhere near his son either."

Chris was silent on the other end of the line. She was gaping with shock and disbelief.

"I…I can't believe you would do something like that," she murmured after a moment, "That's not the Dave Cotter I know…that's not the father I know."

She heard him sigh and take a deep breath.

"I know sweetheart…I wasn't a good person back then. But I'm not that person anymore…I changed. But I guess Sig still holds that grudge against me and he's taking it out on you."

Chris sneered and shook her head.

"So he's angry at me for something I didn't do?" she said as she kicked the wooden cabinet in front of her.

"I'm afraid so honey…it's not fair I know and I'm sorry about the trouble this is causing you," said Dave in a sad voice, "Just do me one favor okay?"

"What's that?"

"Just…stay away from his son…okay?"

Chris let out a laugh of disbelief.

"You can't be serious!" she exclaimed, "Now _you're_ telling me not to see him because of this little feud between you and his dad?"

"Just hear me out, Chris. If you hang out with him, think about the trouble it would cause…think about your crew, your boat, your reputation."

Chris put a hand to her forehead and shook her head.

"I can handle it," she said curtly.

Her father sighed, "Just be careful, okay?"

"Yeah Dad…I will."

Chris ended the call and put her head in her hands. She couldn't believe all that her dad had just told her. Suddenly she remembered the promise she made to Griffin about meeting her at the boat tonight.

"Oh great," she mumbled, wondering what to do.

Then the image of his happy, clear blue eyes came back into her mind. She remembered how sad he had looked in the Elbow Room, grieving for his lost friend and fellow deckhand, and how he had opened up to her, his eyes lighting up with laughter and her short, Norwegian temper.

She smiled to herself and sighed.

"Oh, Chris…you are in way too deep," she said to herself as she decided on what she would do.

She stood up with a confident and defiant look on her face. Her decision made and her mind finally coming to terms with the situation, she walked briskly out of the wheelhouse and stepped out onto the deck…

She had a lot of work to do before Griffin arrived.

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	6. A Little Talk and A Little Kiss

Chapter 5: A Little Talk…And a Little Kiss

Chris scrambled down to the galley and into her stateroom. Her crew had just left to go partying at one of the local clubs, giving her just enough time to get ready before Griffin arrived.

She dug through her clothes, trying to find something decent to wear besides her work clothes. She found a short-sleeve red shirt and slick black pants that she wore sometimes when she was up in the wheelhouse. She sighed and decided that it would have to do and made a bee-line to the bathroom to do her hair and make-up. She wondered for a second why she was stressing so much over this. After all, Griffin was just coming over to talk, right?

She brushed her long black hair out and parted it slightly to the side. Just as she finished applying a touch of mascara, she heard a voice from outside.

"Chris? Captain Cotter…it's Griffin!"

Chris felt her muscles tense in anticipation. She gave her hair a final brushing and then turned to head back out onto the deck. She froze when she saw Griffin. He was wearing a dark blue button-down oxford shirt with the sleeves unbuttoned and folded once over his arms. He had on light blue jeans that were just slightly faded. The colors brought out the brilliant blue in his shining eyes and Chris felt her breath catch in her throat.

Griffin hesitated a moment when he saw Chris walk out of the galley. The outfit she was wearing showed off her great figure and her long, black hair shone brilliantly in the moonlight. Griffin felt his heart stop at the sight. Something about this woman drove him crazy!

"Hey," said Chris after a moment, "Come on board…the crew's out partying again so we won't be bothered."

Griffin smirked, "You let your crew party?"

Chris nodded as they walked up to the wheelhouse, "Yeah I figure it's the best way for them to deal with their problems and to have a little fun before we head out. Of course I don't know that for sure yet…its my first time out on the Bering Sea, so we'll see how it all plays out."

As they walked into the wheelhouse, Chris sat down in her captain's chair and motioned for Griffin to sit on the cushioned bench behind it.

"So, what's on your mind?" asked Chris, "You said you wanted to talk to me?"

Griffin's face fell slightly and he glanced away. Chris frowned in concern but chose not to say anything.

"Um…yeah," said Griffin, "About a couple things actually. You're not busy are you?"

Chris shook her head and settled back into her chair. She pulled one knee up to her chest and gave Griffin a curious look.

"No, I cleared my schedule for you. So what is it? Spill your guts!"

Griffin smirked at that as he shifted on the seat.

"Well…first of all, about my dad and what he said earlier…I'm really sorry. It's stupid really. There was this big prank…"

Griffin stopped when he saw Chris hold up a hand to him.

"Don't worry, I already know," she muttered grudgingly, "I called my dad and asked him. He told me everything…and I'm really sorry that happened. It was a stupid and dangerous prank and Sig had every right 

to be that upset."

Griffin nodded, "Yeah but he has no right to take it out on you! You never did anything…heck you haven't even left the dock yet!"

Chris laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, but I think Sig doesn't want any Cotters back out on the Bering Sea. I'm sure his reputation took a beating. That and I'm sure the other captains weren't too pleased to hear about the whole ordeal and probably sided with him. I guess when they heard his daughter was coming back they weren't very happy."

Griffin sighed and leaned back against the seat.

"Yeah…but they should still give you a shot. You deserve the benefit of the doubt."

Chris smiled as she looked into his troubled blue eyes. If he didn't look so much like his father, she would have sworn that the two weren't related at all. They were complete opposites, personality wise.

"Alright, enough of all that," said Chris with a sigh, "There's not much we can do to change the past. I'll just have to work on the here and now and do my best to prove to them that I'm worthy of being a Bering Sea captain. Now…what else did you want to talk about?"

Griffin hesitated, his eyes becoming more troubled as he thought out what he was going to say.

"Well…it's the crew…my crew," he began slowly, "Ever since Jake…since Jake died, they haven't been the same. And I know everyone has a right to be upset and to miss him and wish it never happened, but they…they just aren't acting right. They won't talk about it at all. If his name is even mentioned at all they quickly change the subject or get angry. I don't understand it. I mean, I know its hard to talk about but it would help a lot if we did. I guess it would provide a little closure, you know?"

Chris frowned in concern at what Griffin was telling her. It seemed like the Northwestern was having plenty of problems at the moment between Sig's dislike of her and the death of one of their youngest deckhands. She could only imagine the problems it would cause if they found out that Griffin was sitting in her wheelhouse right now.

"I know," murmured Chris as she nodded slowly, "I'm so sorry to hear about that. I don't know if I'd be any help to you, with getting the crew to talk and all…I mean, they don't particularly like me that much. But I'm always here if you ever need to talk…don't ever hesitate coming onto my boat. You're always welcome."

Griffin's eyes lit up at that. He smiled broadly and stood to give Chris a hug.

Chris looked a little startled but stood up and hugged him back. It felt good…too good. She didn't want to let go, and neither did he. They stood there in her wheelhouse embracing for what felt like a good five minutes. Finally, Chris pulled away. She cleared her throat awkwardly and glanced away.

"You should be getting back to your boat," she said quietly, "They'll be wondering where you are."

Griffin nodded reluctantly. Every part of him wanted to stay here with the beautiful, Norwegian captain. The longing to be near her was almost overwhelming. Before he knew what he was doing, he bent down slightly and kissed her.

Chris was convinced that she had just been struck by lightning. The kiss was like an electric current that flowed through her entire body.

Griffin reached back and ran his hand through her long, silky black hair. He wanted this moment to last forever.

Finally, he pulled back and gazed down into her clear blue eyes with a smile.

"I'll see you around, captain," he said as he turned to leave.

Chris smiled back, still stunned by the kiss and the feelings that flowed through her.

"Call me Chris," she said quietly.

Griffin turned around and gave her a long, slow smile.

"Okay…then I'll see you around, Chris," he said as he walked down the stairs and into the galley.

Chris leaned back and fell into her chair in a daze. She shook her head, trying to figure out what had just happened. She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and leaned forward to look out of her window. She watched as Griffin jumped off her boat and walked down the docks toward the Northwestern.

"Oh…my…" said Chris as the realization of the entire situation just hit her, "I just kissed Sig Hansen's son…"

…

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	7. Confrontation

Chapter 6: Confrontation

Griffin slipped back onto the Northwestern, trying to be as quiet as he could. He glanced around the deck and slowly crept over to the galley door, wincing at every creak and groan the boat made. He sighed with relief when he opened the door…it was dead silent aside from Matt's snoring.

Just as Griffin relaxed, the lights turned on in the galley and Edgar rounded the corner, his arms folded across his chest and not looking very pleased.

Griffin jumped and whirled around in surprise.

"Edgar?" he asked, trying to control his breathing, "Jeez you scared the hell out of me!"

Edgar frowned at Griffin as he leaned against the doorway.

"Where've you been?" he asked, suspicion in his eyes.

Griffin looked startled at that question. He glanced away awkwardly and mumbled.

"I was…just out for a walk."

Edgar sneered and rolled his eyes.

"You're a horrible liar, kid."

Griffin glanced up at him with a nervous look in his eyes.

"Yeah…that's what everyone keeps telling me," he replied quietly.

Edgar studied Griffin for a moment and sighed, shaking his head.

"You gotta stay away from her Griff," he said in an understanding voice, "I know she's pretty and I know she's nice, but you can't be hanging around…"

Edgar caught himself as he remembered getting caught talking with Chris on her boat a couple days ago. Griffin obviously remembered the event too as he shot a glare at Edgar.

"Okay…we _both_ need to stay away from her and her boat, okay?" he said quietly, "We don't need to cause any excess problems. We're dealing with enough as it is."

Griffin sneered, "We're not dealing with anything," he said angrily, "Apparently we just pretend nothing happened and move on with life."

"Griff…"

"No! I don't want to hear it!" he shouted, growing angrier by the minute, "No one on this boat talks about it…its like Jake just disappeared and no one gives a damn!"

"That's not true and you know it!" snarled Edgar quietly as he felt a wave of emotion hit him. He and Jake had been particularly close and it had nearly destroyed him when Jake died.

"Really?" retorted Griffin, "Well if it isn't why doesn't anybody talk about it?"

"I…I don't know," muttered Edgar as he ran a hand through his hair, his eyes reflecting his despair.

Griffin shook his head and sneered.

"Well since no one else wants to talk about it, I talk to Chris about it! She actually listens to me and she actually cares!"

"Griffin we _do _care," insisted Edgar, "Stop being like this! You know that we all…"

"What the hell is going on out here?" snarled a very irate Sig Hansen as he opened his stateroom door.

Edgar fell silent and shot Griffin a panicked look. Sig saw the look in his brother's eyes and whirled around to face Griffin.

"Where have you been?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at his son.

Griffin swallowed nervously but glared back defiantly.

"Talking to…"

He hesitated when he saw Edgar shaking his head like a mad man and running a hand across his throat, mouthing the word "no" over and over again.

"Talking to who?" asked Sig darkly as he suddenly realized who it must be.

"…to Chris."

Sig's eyes flashed angrily and his body tensed up instantly.

"Oh really?" he said in a low voice.

Edgar put his head in his hands and peered in-between his fingers to see what his oldest brother's reaction was going to be.

"Yeah…I felt like talking about what happened to Jake," he said, fidgeting.

Sig's eyes reflected a myriad of emotions and he hesitated for a moment before he replied.

"I thought I told you to stay away from her?" he hissed.

Griffin threw his hands into the air in exasperation.

"See? See? This is why I went to talk with her!" he exclaimed, "You didn't even _acknowledge_ the fact that I talked about Jake…you skipped that entirely and went right into getting upset about me hanging out with Chris!"

"You two are on a first name basis now?" snarled Sig angrily.

Griffin gave him a disbelieving and exasperated glare.

"You can't be serious!" he shouted, "You know what I think? I think you're being so obnoxious about Chris because it takes your mind off Jake! Well guess what Dad? Jake is gone and we're eventually going to have to come to terms with that!"

Sig's face fell instantly and he looked like he had aged another ten years. He ran a hand through his hair and turned around to go back into his room, not saying another word to his son or his brother. He slammed the door and leaned against it, trying to calm down the emotion that threatened to overwhelm him.

Edgar frowned at Griffin.

"Well that went over well," he said coldly, "Next time, kid…think before you speak. Did it not cross your mind that some of us are having a harder time dealing with this than you realize? Jake…Jake was my best friend…and he and Sig had a close relationship too. So…in the future, keep your mouth shut."

Edgar stormed past him as he too felt a wave of emotion hit him, leaving a stunned and upset Griffin standing in the hallway by himself…

…

Chris woke up early the next morning and walked down into the galley. She heard the snores of her crew as they slept the morning away in their bunks. She smirked, knowing that the partying last night must have lasted longer than usual. She was glad she never really entered that lifestyle. Despite growing up in a fishing community, she never was really into the party scene. She was more of a loner, too independent to feel comfortable in the rowdy party scene.

She sighed as she made some coffee and made her way up to her wheelhouse. Just as she sat down in her chair and relaxed, the phone rang.

She picked it up, wondering who in the world would possibly be calling at this time of day.

"Hello?"

"Hey Chris!" shouted an excited female voice.

Chris' eyes widened in surprise as she recognized the voice.

"Madison?" she asked, surprised that her older sister would be calling her.

"Yeah, you remember me don't you? Your big sis?" laughed Madison.

"Yeah…yeah of course I do! What's up?" she asked as she rubbed her tired eyes.

"Well…I got the best news!"

Chris smirked, "And what would that amazing news be?"

"I got a job!"

"Oh Madison that's awesome!" exclaimed Chris.

Her sister had been let go from her last job when the company started having serious economic problems. For the past year she had been struggling, taking on small temporary jobs while she searched for one that would pay enough to take care of the bills.

"And you're never going to guess where it is!" she squealed.

Chris laughed at her sister's enthusiasm, "Where?"

"The Elbow Room!"

Chris froze instantly. She gaped in surprise and her eyes grew wide with disbelief.

"Chris? You still there?"

"Huh? Oh…yeah, I'm here," stammered Chris, "The Elbow Room? As in the Dutch Harbor Elbow 

Room?"

"Is there any other?" asked Madison, uncertainty in her voice, "Is everything okay?"

"Um…yeah, yeah that's great Mad! I'm proud of you," said Chris, faking her excitement.

"Aw, thanks Chris! I'll be there by tonight! You should bring the crew in…I want to meet them!"

Chris ran a hand through her hair, not sure exactly how to react.

"Um, yeah…yeah that'd be great!"

"Awesome! Alright, I'll see you later sis!"

After Chris hung up the phone, she put her head in her hands and shook her head.

"This isn't happening," she muttered.

The thought of her sister working in the place where every captain and crew member went to eat and party made her a nervous wreck. They had already made their opinions well-known regarding her and her crew, and now her sister was about to start working in the Elbow Room.

Chris sighed and leaned back in her chair.

"This can't be good…this just can't end well…"

…

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	8. Madison

**Thank you soo much for the reviews everyone!! **

Chapter 7: Madison

Chris slipped inside the Elbow Room that evening. She was waiting for her sister, Madison, to arrive. Danni had offered for Madison to stay in the upstairs room of the tavern where she lived and Chris wanted to tell Danni how grateful she was for the offer.

As soon as she walked in the building, she saw Griffin sitting at the bar and talking to Danni. He looked upset and distressed as he talked urgently to Danni.

"I just don't get it," he said as he ran a hand through his blonde hair, "I mean…I wasn't trying to upset them. I just…I don't know, I don't even know."

Danni frowned in concern but looked up when she heard the floor boards creaking. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Chris? Hey what are you doing here this late?"

Griffin's head shot up when he heard Danni say Chris' name. He whirled around, his troubled eyes softening the second he made eye-contact with the young, female captain.

"Chris…" he breathed as he watched her walk over to them.

Chris smiled at him and sat down on the barstool next to him. She sighed and glanced over at Danni.

"I'm just waiting for my sister," she said as she leaned on the counter, "As if I didn't have enough things to worry about, now I got my sister coming over to work in Dutch Harbor."

Griffin raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Your sister? I didn't know you had a sister."

Chris sighed again, "Yeah…she's older than me. She should be here soon."

Chris glanced over at Griffin and saw the sad, confused look in his eyes. She frowned slightly and narrowed her eyes in curiosity.

"What's going on?" she asked him quietly, "You okay?"

Griffin looked away as anger flashed in his eyes.

"I'm just frustrated," he muttered, "No one wants to talk about what happened with Jake…and they know I was on your boat last night."

Chris' eyes shot open with horror.

"Are you serious?" she hissed as she ran a hand through her long dark hair.

Griffin nodded, "Yeah…Edgar and my dad heard me come in and we kind of got into a bad argument about it…and Jake. It didn't end well. I said some things I probably shouldn't have said and Dad got upset and Edgar got really mad."

Chris shook her head and shot Danni a disbelieving look. Danni's expression mirrored Chris'. She looked equally shocked, upset, and confused.

"So…Sig's still upset about you hanging out with Chris?" asked Danni.

Griffin nodded angrily and glanced away.

Danni sighed, "I wish there was something I could do…I'm sorry to hear you guys are going through so much."

Chris frowned, "Maybe we shouldn't hang out for a while," she said reluctantly, "Maybe hanging out with me is just making everything worse?"

Chris hated saying those words as much as Griffin hated hearing them. It wasn't fair and it wasn't right, but Chris knew that deep down she didn't want to make things any harder for the crew of the Northwestern.

Griffin's eyes flashed with a mixture of panic and sadness.

"What? No…no you're not making it worse," he said urgently, "You're helping _me_."

Chris sighed sadly, "I know…but I'm not doing anything to help your crew. If they don't like me, then maybe I need to just stay away for awhile."

Chris could have kicked herself when she saw the look on Griffin's face. He looked deeply upset at hearing this and glanced away sharply.

"Maybe you should listen to her."

Chris, Danni, and Griffin all jumped and turned around to see who had said that. Chris' eyes widened in fear and panic when she recognized Sig Hansen. Danni looked nervous and retreated a little from Griffin. Griffin, meanwhile, looked infuriated and shot his dad an angry glare.

"Captain Hansen," said Chris, trying to keep her cool, "I was just…"

"I know what you were just doing!" snapped Sig, "And you're lucky I don't…."

"Sig!" shouted a woman's voice from behind him.

Sig turned around and came face to face with Jack Hansen, his youngest brother's wife and Northwestern deckhand.

"Knock it off, would you?" she snapped angrily.

"What the hell are you doing here?" asked Sig, angry about being challenged by one of his deckhands in front of a group of people.

"I came to talk to Danni for awhile," retorted Jack, "Is that okay or am I not allowed to talk to her either?"

Chris' eyes grew wide with surprise to hear the challenging words from the smaller woman. The fire in her eyes as she glared up at her captain was also rather surprising. Apparently they had butted heads before.

"Go back to the boat," said Sig in a low voice that left no room for questions.

But Jack did not break her hard stare for another full minute. She glanced over at Chris and Griffin and then shot her captain one last glare before she walked around him. She sat down on the barstool next to Chris and held out a hand for her to shake.

Chris shot her a terrified look as she shook her hand.

"Nice to see you again," said Jack in a kind voice.

"What are you doing?" whispered Chris in a fearful voice.

Jack just rolled her eyes and turned to look back at Sig. He looked like he was going to go after all of them in a second.

"Why don't you join us?" asked Jack as she shot Sig a hard stare, "Come on…what'll it hurt to have a round of drinks together?"

Sig looked at Jack like she had just grown another head. He narrowed his eyes at her in disbelief. She only rolled her eyes in reply and patted the barstool next to her.

"Aw, come on captain…my treat!"

Sig hesitated, shooting a glare in Griffin and Chris' direction. Chris looked shell-shocked and Griffin was still shooting his dad threatening and uncertain looks. Sig was still contemplating his decision when the front door was flung open and a young woman with dark brown hair and hazel eyes ran inside excitedly. Sig shot the girl a confused look while Chris jumped up in surprise and made her way over to her.

"Sis!" exclaimed the woman when she saw Chris.

"Um, hey Madison," said Chris as she gave her older sister a hug.

"Well don't act all happy or excited or anything," said Madison, giving her sister a confused look, "What's wrong?"

Chris turned around and glanced back at Sig. He looked even angrier now than before. She swallowed nervously and turned to look back at her sister.

"I think the real question is…what _isn't _wrong?"

…

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	9. Gaining Ground

Chapter 8: Gaining Ground

Madison looked from Chris to Sig and furrowed her brow in confusion. Apparently she had arrived at an inopportune time.

"Griffin," said Sig in a low, intense voice, "I think it's time we leave."

Jack's eyes were wide with surprise as she looked at the two sisters. She whirled around angrily when she heard what Sig said.

"And you too," snarled Sig, "That is of course if you enjoy keeping your job."

Danni's eyes flew open in shock. She knew Sig was one of the tougher captains but he was always fair and had reasons behind his every move. Only this time, Danni couldn't figure it out.

Jack looked equally shocked at Sig's threat. She shot him a hurt look and slowly stood up from her seat. She didn't even give him a passing glance as she quickly made her way out of the Elbow Room.

Griffin glared at his dad and turned around to look at Chris. He shot her a look of sadness and desperation. The longing he felt to be with her was fully written in his gaze. Chris felt her heart constrict as a myriad of emotions hit her. She was happy to see her sister, furious at Sig and now upset to see Griffin stand to leave the room.

"Sig…" ventured Chris, as a strong feeling of needing to reach out to the troubled captain overwhelmed her.

Sig shot her a glare as he opened the door to leave.

"It would be in your best interest to stay far away from my crew…that goes for her too," he snapped as he ushered his son out of the room and slammed the door shut.

Madison's eyes were wide with fear and confusion while Danni and Chris exchanged disbelieving and distressed glances.

"Um…Chris?" asked Madison, hesitantly, "What…what's going on?"

Chris shook her head and ran a hand through her hair, her eyes bright with emotion.

"It's a long story," she murmured sadly.

Madison instantly became concerned. Her younger sister was always tough and independent but the look in her eyes and her reaction to this situation was alarming.

"Well, I got time," she replied, "If Danni doesn't mind, maybe once we get the suitcases inside we could go to the upstairs room and talk?"

Danni nodded in agreement, "That's fine with me. Here, I'll help you get your bags."

Madison thanked Danni and the two young women went outside to get the bags. Chris took a deep, steadying breath before she turned to join them, her heart heavy and her chest tight with the mixture of emotions that coursed through her…

…

"Dad this is ridiculous!" shouted Griffin, "There's no reason you should be treating her like this!"

Sig whirled around on his son. They were walking on the docks toward the Northwestern and the snow was beginning to fall.

"How many times do I have to tell you to stay away from her?" he snapped.

Jack was just ahead of them and stopped when she heard Griffin and Sig arguing. She turned and gave her captain a despairing look.

"Sig please just at least help us understand what's going on," begged Jack, "What's so bad about her? And now we can't talk to her sister either? This is a lot bigger than you just not liking her cause she's a female captain. So what is it?"

Griffin glanced up at his dad to judge his reaction. He had stiffened up instantly and shot Jack an angry look. Before he opened his mouth to reply, Griffin cut in.

"She told me."

Sig froze and shot his son a questioning look.

"Told you what?" he asked, voice tense.

Jack walked back over to them, narrowing her eyes curiously.

"She told me about what happened with her dad and you a while back," he said quietly, "She said that after you told her to ask her dad why you didn't like her, that she called him. And then she told me what he said."

Sig's eyes flashed with anger as he recalled what had happened several years ago. He looked away sharply, avoiding his son's raking gaze.

Jack looked utterly confused as she glanced between the two of them. She made a mental note to catch Griffin alone later and get him to tell her the full story.

"Dad…I know why you don't like her dad," he said quietly, "I get that. I wouldn't like him either…but she hasn't done anything wrong."

Sig sneared, "Cotters don't belong on the Bering Sea," he snapped angrily, "They aren't good news…never have been. What Chris' dad didn't tell her was that her grandfather and great-grandfather used to fish out here too. They caused their fair share of problems and lost the respect of every boat in the fleet. They're bad news…and now, yet again, the next generation of Cotters are here."

Griffin looked away, uncertain as to how to respond to what his dad was telling him. He knew deep down that Chris wasn't like her predecessors. He just knew…and he wished desperately that his dad could see it too.

Sig saw the sad and despairing look in his son's eyes and the confused and upset look in Jack's eyes and instantly felt a wave of guilt and compassion wash over him. He leaned towards his son and gave him a hug.

Griffin looked startled at this gesture. His dad wasn't the touchy-feely type so this was rather unusual.

"I'm sorry," he murmured in his son's ear, "I just don't want you to get hurt."

Griffin pulled back and rolled his eyes at his dad.

"I'm not a kid anymore you know," he muttered, "I can take care of myself."

Sig smiled slightly at that and ruffled his son's hair.

"I know…I know…" he murmured.

He glanced over at Jack who had moved off when she realized that they were having a father-son moment. She was standing at the edge of the dock, arms crossed, gazing out at the water.

Griffin nudged his dad and nodded his head in her direction. Sig sighed in resignation and slowly walked over to Jack.

"Hey," he said quietly as he put one hand on her arm.

Jack glanced over at him with uncertainty in her eyes. She wasn't sure if he was going to yell at her or not, so she tensed up and waited.

Sig saw her reaction and instantly felt guilty all over again. He sighed and gave her an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, "I didn't mean what I said in there…I was just angry."

Jack smiled slightly, "You're always angry," she muttered as she gave him a hug.

"So," said Griffin, "Do you think we could all talk about what happened now?"

Sig looked at his son, his eyes instantly glazing over in fear and pain. He swallowed, trying to keep down the emotion that threatened to overtake him. Jack put a hand on his arm and gave him a desperately sad and understanding look.

"Sig…I know this is hard," she murmured, "But…Griffin's right. We need to talk about it. It's the only way we'll ever be able to move on. We can't risk going out to sea in the state we're all in right now."

Sig knew that they were both right but everything inside of him rebelled against the thought. He wasn't sure he wanted to move on…moving on to him meant forgetting and he didn't want to forget the young, enthusiastic and talented young deckhand.

He nodded reluctantly and Jack and Griffin exchanged happy looks.

"Alright…but not tonight. Tomorrow…okay?" he asked, sighing sadly.

Griffin nodded and gave his dad a pleased look. At last they were finally beginning to gain some ground with the stubborn captain. He smiled slightly.

"Yeah…tomorrow."

…

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**Okay…I like this chapter a little better….**

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	10. Time Heals

Chapter 9: Time Heals

"You can't be serious!" exclaimed Madison furiously.

Danni smirked slightly from where she was sitting on her bed in the second floor of the Elbow Room. The sisters obviously shared the same kind of fighting Norwegian spirit.

The three women had spent the day together discussing the problems at hand and trying to figure out a way to solve them. In the end they were no closer than when they had started. Madison was getting very frustrated with the whole thing.

Chris sighed and leaned back on the bed. She was sitting on the floor just below where Danni was seated on the bed. Madison sat across from her on the rug, legs folded Indian-style and her eyes flashing with fury.

"So this, Captain Hansen, hates you because of what are dad did years ago?" continued Madison.

Chris nodded, "Yeah…he doesn't like you either apparently. He told us both to stay away from his crew, remember? I think he's got a thing against anyone with the last name Cotter."

Madison threw her hands up into the air in disbelief. She started to rattle off in Norwegian, causing Chris to laugh slightly. Danni glanced between the two of them, looking utterly lost.

"She's cursing in Norwegian," explained Chris when she saw the confused look on Danni's face, "She does that when she's angry."

"This is just so stupid!" shouted Madison, "He's got no right judging us for what our dad did. That's ridiculous!"

Danni smirked, "I think you're preaching to the choir. We're on your side, remember?"

Madison sighed, forcing herself to calm down.

"Are all you Norwegians this hot-headed?" asked Danni.

Chris smiled and nodded, "At least all the ones I've ever known!"

After a couple moments, Madison stood up and stretched.

"Alright…well we all had better get some sleep," she said as she glanced at her sister, "And you better be getting back to your crew. We'll deal with this Captain Hansen once we're well rested."

Chris sneered, "Good luck with that!" as she leaned over to hug her sister.

"Goodnight you two…see you bright and early tomorrow morning!"

They said their goodbyes and Chris made her way back down the stairs and out of the Elbow Room. It was pitch black outside and Chris found it was hard to see where she was walking. She slipped once, letting out an uncharacteristic squeal of fright. She fell just along the edge of the dock, her eyes wide with the realization that if she was a mere inch closer she would be swimming in the frigid harbor water.

She let out a shaky breath as she slowly stood up and brushed the snow off of her jacket. She huddled under it and made her way toward the Hannah Boden with more slow and carefully measured steps.

As she climbed onto her boat and made her way into the galley, she was greeted by her very worried looking crew.

"Where have you been?" exclaimed Ashley as she hurried over to Chris, "We've been worried!"

Billy moved over to his captain and put an arm around her shoulders. Chris smiled gratefully as she made her way over to the crew.

"Sorry guys," she murmured guiltily. This whole business with the Northwestern and Griffin was starting to affect her work and that was something she did not like. Her crew deserved to have a fully-alert captain, not one making goo-goo eyes with some deckhand of another boat.

"Where were you?" asked Sasha as she helped Chris out of her jacket.

"I was at the Elbow Room with Danni and my sister," she said quietly, "Madison's going to start working for Danni and we had some things we had to talk about."

Another wave of guilt washed over Chris as she realized that she was only telling her crew half of the story.

"Well it's good to know you're safe," said Daniel as he handed her a mug full of warm coffee.

Chris smiled at him and nodded thankfully as she took a sip. She glanced around at her crew and realized how lucky she was to have such a dedicated bunch of people on her boat. They stuck around even after they knew that they would be ridiculed for having a female captain. It never seemed to really bother them that much.

"Thanks guys," said Chris, "Really I'm fine. I'm just tired."

"Well you go get yourself some sleep," urged Billy, "We got work to do in the morning!"

Chris was suddenly struck by the realization that the King Crab season started in only two more days. She sighed as she realized how right Billy was. They had a lot of work to do…

…

The next morning, Sig was up in the wheelhouse fidgeting nervously. He glanced at the radio for the hundredth time and hesitated. Finally, not being able to stand it any longer, he grabbed it.

"Guys wake up!" he shouted over the loud hailer, "Get into the galley…we gotta talk."

Griffin shot up out of bed the second he heard his dad's voice. He knew what this meant and was torn between the feelings of relief and dread. It was something that had to be done but he wasn't going to enjoy a single second of it.

As he walked out of his room he saw Edgar already seated at the table with Jack at his side. She was giving him worried looks, concerned about the faraway look in his eyes. Matt walked in and sat on the other side of Edgar and shot him an understanding look.

Baylee walked in, stretching and yawning as she slowly made her way over to the table.

"Morning everyone," she murmured tiredly, "Anyone know what Sig wants to talk to us about?"

"I was hoping you'd know," muttered Norman as he sat down, rubbing his tired eyes.

Griffin sat down beside Norman and waited with everyone else for Sig to come in. After a few moments, they heard him walking down the stairs slowly as he made his way to the galley.

The look on his face when he walked in alarmed them. He looked very upset and stressed out as he gazed at his family and crew. He shot Griffin a knowing look and Griffin glanced away quickly, unable to hold his 

father's despairing gaze for too long.

Sig cleared his throat as he prepared to speak.

"I, um…I think its time we talk about what happened," he said quietly, not meeting anyone's eyes, "About what happened…to Jake."

The entire crew's eyes shot open in surprise at that. They glanced at each other with a mixture of shock and sadness as the memory of that horrible day came back to them.

"I was persuaded by a couple of very insistent and stubborn deckhands," he said as he glanced between Jack and Griffin, "And I came to the conclusion that they were right. As much as I hate this…we need to get it all out in the open before we leave for the season. I don't want anyone out there getting emotionally unstable and then getting hurt. That's the very last thing we need right now. I want to start this off by saying that what happened to Jake was nobody's fault…I don't blame anyone in this room for what happened, I hope you all know that."

Edgar glanced away sharply, an angry and hurt look entering his eyes. Jack instantly became very concerned and put an arm around Edgar, giving him confused and questioning looks.

Edgar's reaction did not escape Sig's notice. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair before he continued.

"That means you too, Edgar," he said quietly.

Edgar glanced at him with the most upset and despairing look. He shook his head in protest and let out a very shaky breath.

"No…that's not true," he muttered wretchedly, "If I would have been watching him like I was supposed to…none of this would have happened. If I'd just had my eye on him while he was on the stack…I would have reacted faster…and he'd still be here…"

Griffin felt like someone had just stabbed him in the chest. The pain in Edgar's voice and eyes cut him deeper than any knife ever could. He had no idea that his uncle was suffering this much.

Sig also looked rather distressed to see his tough, younger brother in shambles. This wasn't like Edgar at all.

"Edgar…there was nothing you could have done," said Jack, trying to control her emotions, "He hit the dock on the way down. The doctors said that's what got him…not the water. He was gone the second he fell. You couldn't…you couldn't have done anything to stop that."

Edgar seemed to relax a little at hearing that, but he still looked very upset and angry with himself.

Matt patted his friend's shoulder and shot him a terribly sad and understanding look.

"Edgar, they're right," he muttered, "It wasn't your fault…it wasn't anybody's fault. Sometimes…sometimes things happen that are just out of your control."

Sig glanced around at his upset and depressed crew. Baylee was crying openly and Norman had an arm around her comfortingly, but he was trying to battle his own emotions at the same time. Matt was comforting a distraught Edgar while Jack was leaning on his shoulder with tears in her eyes. Griffin looked stunned as he glanced around the room.

Sig sighed and muttered quietly to himself.

"This could take a while," he said as he sat down next to Griffin and put an arm around him.

No matter how long it took for the crew to put themselves back together, Sig was now willing to take all the time they needed to move on from this disaster. He just hoped that they could…

…

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Oh I gotta good idea for the next chapter!! Hehe!! I'll see if I can't get it up today! If not it'll be up first thing in the morning, promise!!


	11. Taking a Risk

Chapter 10: Taking a Risk

Every part of Chris rebelled against what she was about to do. She didn't want to do this…she wasn't expecting anything good to come out of it, but her conscience wouldn't let up until she did.

She had woken up that morning and dished out orders to her crew to get the boat prepped for the King Crab season that began tomorrow morning. She told them that she had a few things to take care of and that she would be back later that day.

Now she found herself standing next to the large bow of the Northwestern, shivering both with cold and dread. She was struck by the beauty of the boat in the early morning light. It looked freshly scrubbed and the hull gleamed brightly. She took a deep breath, pulling her parka closer to her, as she climbed onto the Northwestern.

She glanced around warily, half-expecting Sig to leap out of no where and to start yelling and cursing at her. She was surprised to hear how quiet it was. Chris glanced up at the wheelhouse to see if she could see Sig, but the wheelhouse was empty. Frowning, she took another deep breath and slowly opened the door that led to the galley.

Peering inside, she saw a light on near the end of the hallway. She slowly made her way down the hallway, wondering whether or not to announce her presence to whoever was in the room…

…

The crew of the Northwestern had spent the morning talking, and some even crying, about Jake and the horrible incident that happened only a few short weeks ago. It was a painful process but it had its own healing affects as well. Being able to talk about it together and mourn for Jake together created a since of closure and camaraderie among the crew.

Just then, Griffin thought he heard something outside the room. He glanced at the galley door and his mouth flew open in a mixture of surprise and horror.

Sig saw his son's expression and whirled around to see what he was gaping at. He froze, stunned at the sight.

Chris swallowed fearfully when she realized Sig had seen her. She was surprised to find the entire crew together in the galley this late in the morning. She walked in hesitantly and glanced at Sig warily, wondering whether or not he was going to throw her off the boat right then and there.

"Um…hi," she said quietly, glancing at Griffin.

Griffin was still gaping in shock. He shot his dad a nervous look, wondering what his reaction was going to be to Chris' unexpected arrival. Sig looked too stunned to speak at the moment and Griffin wasn't sure that was such a bad thing.

"I'm sorry for just boarding the boat like this without permission," she continued after a second, "I didn't see anyone on deck and I looked up at the wheelhouse and no one was there either. I figured I'd check down here…I'll, um…I'll leave if you want me too."

She glanced briefly at Sig, trying to gage how he was taking all of this. She had contemplated this move earlier that morning and put herself in his shoes. If a rival captain just boarded the boat randomly she knew how she would react so she could only imagine how he would react.

Matt's eyes were as round as saucers as he glanced between the two feuding captains. Edgar was staring fearfully at Sig, while Baylee was giving her husband a fierce glare, daring him to say she couldn't stay. Norman just raised a surprised eyebrow and shook his head in disbelief.

Jack was also giving her captain a challenging stare. She deeply respected her captain, but she was too stubborn and independent to just sit by and let him kick the young captain off the boat. She wasn't afraid to argue with her captain or, as Sig preferred to call it, "discuss things at length." Ever since she and Edgar had been married, she and Sig had developed an unusual friendship. It didn't matter how angry they got at each other or how loud they yelled, in the end they managed to make up and move on. They both knew that they were hard-headed and rather set in their ways, so they decided to just accept the fact and deal with it as situations arose…situations much like this one.

"There's no reason she can't stay," said Jack, boldly.

Sig came out of his shocked stupor and shot a glare at Jack. He narrowed his eyes at her, warning her to keep silent even though he knew it was useless.

Jack held his glare evenly and stood up to walk towards Chris.

"We can at least hear whatever it is she has to say," she pressed, not letting the argument go by the wayside, "I don't think she would take such a big risk like this if it wasn't important. So why don't we hear her out?"

Chris was giving Jack a stunned look. She had seen Jack defy her captain back at the Elbow Room and get severely scolded. Chris was surprised to see the fire in Jack's eyes as she, yet again, defied her captain on her behalf.

Sig's eyes became dark as his anger began to get built up again. Baylee jumped up from her seat before he could say anything and went to stand next to Jack and Chris.

"I think Jack's right," she stated, giving Sig a stern glare, "We should hear Captain Cotter out."

Jack was rather surprised to hear Baylee taking her side. The two women never got along well due to their differing personalities. She shot Baylee a grateful glance and Baylee returned the look with a wink.

Edgar was the next to stand up and walk over to the women. He cleared his throat and shot his oldest brother a somewhat amused look. He shrugged his shoulders as he put one arm around his wife.

"Sorry Sig," he said with a smirk, "Gotta side with my wife on this one."

Jack elbowed him lightly and gave him a loving and grateful look.

Matt stood up slowly and moved over to the now rather large group. Sig was beginning to get annoyed with the whole situation.

"Sorry, Sig," said Matt, "But they're right!"

Norman glanced around and rolled his eyes in exasperation as he stood up.

"Fine…I'm on their side," he muttered as he stood by Matt.

Griffin followed him, shooting his dad a worried look.

"Sorry Dad…but you know where I stand on this issue."

Chris' eyes were round with shock as she watched the entire crew side with her. This was definitely not what she had expected.

Sig was shaking his head in disbelief, but couldn't help hide a small smile of amusement as he watched his 

crew shoot him a mixture of defiant glares and nervous glances.

"So this is a mutiny?" he asked with a slight laugh.

Jack nodded, "Yeah…I think that's basically it."

Sig shot her a mock angry look and Jack replied with a victorious smirk.

After a few tense moments, Sig finally sighed in resignation. He shot his crew a final feigned glare before he spoke.

"Fine, you win…this time! But don't expect that the next time you all…"

Sig was drowned out by the happy squeals and cheers of Jack and Baylee and the laughs of the men as they watched the two women hug each other happily. It was an odd and rather amusing sight because they all knew that in the matter of minutes the two would be at each other's throats yet again.

Chris wasn't sure how to react. She glanced happily at the crew and then looked over at Sig, surprise and uncertainty in her eyes.

"Alright, alright," said Sig, motioning for the rowdy crew to settle down, "What is it you wanted to say?"

Chris cleared her throat slightly and stepped forward.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could speak with you…alone, just for a moment, if that's alright," she said nervously, still not entirely sure whether or not all this was really happening.

Sig hesitated for a second. His hesitation sparked more glares from Jack, Baylee, and Griffin. He shot them irritated looks and sighed.

"Well…I guess I have to say yes to that," he said with a smirk, "If I don't I think half my crew might toss be into the harbor."

Chris smiled and relaxed slightly. She wondered what had come over Sig to make him actually agree to allowed her to stay on the boat and to listen to what she had to say. In fact, the entire crew looked more relaxed and almost relieved for some reason.

"Come on up to the wheelhouse when you're ready," said Sig as he turned to walk up the stairs.

Chris nodded and turned to look back at the crew. She gave them all a shocked look.

"You guys are crazy!" she hissed under her breath.

This brought out a roar of laughter from the crew. Griffin shook his head as he walked over to her.

"Oh…you haven't seen crazy till you've seen Edgar with matches and hairspray!"

Another round of laughter erupted from the crew as Griffin leaned over to hug Chris.

"You're either really brave or certifiably insane," he muttered into her ear.

Chris smirked as he pulled back, "Or a combination of both."

Edgar nudged Jack and nodded at Chris and Griffin. Jack nodded knowingly and she and Baylee exchanged amused looks. Matt was trying to hold back a giggle at the sight of them. The look in their eyes as they gazed at each other was unmistakable. They liked each other a lot more than they let on.

"I better go up and talk to Sig," said Chris after a moment.

Griffin nodded and gave her another hug, "Good luck!"

Chris smiled, "Thanks…I may need it!"

…

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Omg this is the first chapter in awhile that I actually LIKED!! Lol! I usually never like what I write…I guess it's a writer thing…or a Lauren thing…not really sure which…lol!

Thanks for all the reviews!! I'm super happy that everyone seems to enjoy this one! I'm so stressed out today with preparing for college but you guys send me some of the nicest reviews so that made today a LOT better!! I love you guys!!


	12. Captain to Captain

Chapter 11: Captain to Captain

As Chris walked up the stairs to the wheelhouse she felt her heart begin to hammer in her chest. Sig was nice enough in front of his crew, but would he be just as kind to her when they were alone?

She took a deep breath, preparing herself for the worst, and then opened the door and slipped inside the wheelhouse.

Sig was sitting in the captain's chair staring out over the harbor with a faraway look in his eyes. He didn't even realize Chris was there until she spoke.

"Captain?" she asked quietly as she walked over to him.

He jumped slightly but relaxed when he realized it was her. He motioned for her to sit down on the bench-like seat behind the captain's chair and she complied.

"Alright," said Sig, studying her face, "What is so important that you couldn't wait till after the season to tell me?"

Chris swallowed nervously and cleared her throat. He was being civil but the guarded look in his eyes reminded her that they were not friends. This was strictly a captain to captain conversation and nothing more.

"I…I came to apologize to you," began Chris, forcing herself to meet his intimidating gaze.

Sig blinked in surprise at that and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"For what?" he asked, suspicion and uncertainty in his eyes.

Chris swallowed again and glanced at him.

"For what my father did to you and your crew," she said quietly, "It was wrong…I don't think he knew how serious that prank was going to be. But regardless, it was wrong and he shouldn't have done that. I know my last name is sort of a curse around here, but I plan on changing that. I know you don't like me, Captain Hansen, but I promise you that I'll prove myself to you and to the fleet. I'm not my father."

Sig stared into her eyes for a minute, trying to gage how serious she was and to see if her words matched what she felt. All he saw was desperation and a strong drive in her. She was dead serious about this and he couldn't help but admit to himself that it was rather impressive.

He nodded slightly after what seemed like hours to Chris. She relaxed slightly, happy that he wasn't going to throw her off the boat or go into a yelling temper tantrum.

"Okay," he said quietly, "You're obviously serious about this. We'll see if your words match your actions. How's that?"

Chris smiled gratefully, "Thank you Captain," she said as she extended her hand, "I hope that in the future our boats will become friends rather than rivals."

Sig raised an eyebrow at that as he accepted her hand and shook it.

"Don't get carried away," he said as he squeezed her hand tighter, "Let's just see how this season goes, alright?"

Chris smirked, "If that's what you want."

Just as Chris turned to leave the wheelhouse, Sig called her back.

"Oh, and Cotter?" said Sig, "I think my son is rather taken with you…for now I'd like for you two to stay apart from one another…we'll see how the future goes, alright?"

Chris felt a wave of anger hit her. Her eyes flashed slightly and she quickly glanced away so he wouldn't see how much that irritated her.

But Sig had noticed. He narrowed his eyes slightly and tried to hide a smirk of amusement. Apparently she was falling for his son just as hard as Griffin was falling for her.

She steadied herself and forced her eyes to remain neutral when she turned to answer him.

"Okay…if that's what you want, I'll keep my distance."

She desperately wanted to argue with him and to tell him exactly what she thought about him telling his adult son who he could and couldn't see. But she knew that if she was going to end this age-old rivalry, she was going to have to stay calm and collected and respect his decisions.

Sig was rather surprised by her response. He half-expected her to whirl around and start yelling at him. He was somewhat impressed by her reaction to his order. Captains usually never took well to being given orders, especially from other captains. After she left the wheelhouse he nodded to himself and smiled.

"Alright…I guess she really is serious," he muttered to himself, "We'll just see how she does out on the sea…"

…

As Chris came down the stairs from the wheelhouse, the Northwestern crew gathered around her and began to ask her a million questions. She smiled and held up a hand to silence them.

"We talked…and I think he's willing to give me the benefit of the doubt," she said slowly, "He's going to see if I'm true to my word this season and then go from there."

Edgar looked shocked.

"He said that?" he asked in disbelief, "We are talking about the same guy here right?"

Chris laughed, "Yeah, Sig said that. I really have to go. My crew has to be wondering where I've run off to again."

Baylee went over and gave Chris a hug before she could escape.

"I'm sure things will work out," she murmured, "Just stay strong and have faith! We're here for you."

Chris shot her a grateful look as Jack rushed over to give her a hug too.

"Yeah, you're not so bad," she said with a wink.

Chris smirked as she made her way to the door.

"Thanks guys…I'll see you all after the season," she said as she walked back out onto the deck.

Griffin was standing on his toes, looking over the rest of the crew at Chris. He saw her leave and quickly made his way through the small crowd and followed her outside.

Matt nudged Norman and nodded in Griffin's direction.

"There goes trouble," he muttered.

Norman shook his head, "Those kids better be careful…Sig'll have both of their heads mounted on his wheelhouse wall if they're not!"

…

"Chris!"

Chris was just about to climb off the boat when she heard Griffin calling her name. She cast a wary glance up at the wheelhouse and then smiled slightly at Griffin.

"Hey," she said softly.

"I'm so glad things are working out!" he exclaimed, his blue eyes gleaming happily, "I mean…Dad just got us all together and talked to us about Jake and now he's talking to you? Things are looking up!"

Chris' eyes widened at that, "Wow…I can't believe he talked to you guys about Jake. That is a really good sign!"

Griffin was practically bouncing up and down he was so happy. Chris couldn't help but smirk in amusement as she watched him.

"Hey, Griff?" she asked, her face falling slightly.

Griffin stopped fidgeting and gave her a concerned look when he saw the sadness in her eyes.

"What is it?" he asked softly as he reached out to lift her chin up.

Chris took a step back immediately and her heart tightened when she saw the upset and confused look on Griffin's face.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, "But…we can't see each other."

Griffin gave her the most despairing and confused look as he took a step back, shocked by what she had said.

"Griff…"

"This is my Dad's doing isn't it?" he asked bitterly.

Chris sighed and reached out to him, but he pulled away.

"No, don't Chris," he muttered, "I don't want to get you in trouble."

Chris frowned and was surprised to feel tears beginning to form in her eyes. She hadn't felt this way for anyone in a very long time and it was killing her to push him away.

"I'm sorry," she said, trying to keep her emotions in check, "I just can't risk going against what he said. I want to make things better between our families…then maybe we can see each other."

Griffin nodded, not meeting her gaze as he turned to go back into the galley.

Chris ran a hand through her hair and angrily wiped the tears from her eyes. She climbed off the boat and 

walked down the dock, looking down at the ground and holding her parka close to her.

Meanwhile, in the wheelhouse….Sig had seen and heard the entire exchange…

…

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Thanks so much to everyone who is reading and reviewing!!

I'm gonna go ahead and post another chapter…it'll be shorter than this one but it'll have some pivotal things in it!!


	13. Confession

Chapter 12: Confession

Chris climbed back onto her boat around mid-day. The crew was busy prepping the pots and chaining down the stacks in preparation for their early departure the next morning. The all stopped working for a moment when they saw their captain climb onto the boat.

"Hey Chris!" said Billy from the top of the stack, giving her a friendly wave.

Chris forced a smile and waved back. She was about to go into her wheelhouse, but hesitated for a moment. She turned back around to face her crew. She knew that it was about time that she came clean to her crew.

"Hey Billy?" she shouted, "Get the crew together. Tell them I need to speak to them down in the galley!"

"Aye, aye Cap'n!" said Billy with a mock salute.

Chris rolled her eyes and shook her head at her crazy deck boss. She smirked though when she recalled what Griffin had told her about Edgar lighting things on fire. At least Billy didn't do that.

Several minutes later, the crew of the Hannah Boden was gathered below in the galley waiting for their captain to come down from the wheelhouse.

As Chris walked into the room, the crew fell silent and waited for their captain to say whatever it was she needed to say.

Chris leaned against the galley wall and glanced at her crew. She took a deep breath before she spoke.

"I know I've been out a lot lately," she began, "More so than I should've been. I should've been here making sure things are working smoothly. I let myself get distracted with my own problems and I apologize for that."

The crew glanced around at each other in surprise and confusion.

"You don't need to apologize," said Sasha, "We're doing fine! And we knew you had something going on so Billy kept things in line for you."

Chris shot Billy a grateful look and nodded slowly.

"Yeah, and I really appreciate that, but I'm still your captain and I need to be acting like it. It's kind of a long story, so I'll shorten it up the best that I can…"

Chris told her crew everything about the Northwestern, her dad, and even Griffin. The crew looked shocked and dismayed when she had finished.

"So…he won't let you and Griffin see each other?" asked Ashley with a mixture of anger and sadness in her eyes.

Chris shook her head, "No and its probably for the best anyways…I have to worry about other things right now, like my boat and my crew and the King Crab we're gonna catch this season."

Chris knocked on the wooden table and Daniel smirked slightly.

"You know you can still have a personal life and be a captain at the same," he said.

Chris shrugged, "Well for now I'm putting my full attention on you guys and on fishing. If Captain Hansen chooses to befriend us in the future then I'll deal with it then. Until that happens, we got work to do. Now I'm going to go double check the course I plotted earlier and you guys finish stacking those pots, alright?"

The crew nodded and began to move to go carry out her orders.

Chris made her way to her wheelhouse and closed the door behind her. She leaned on it and put her head in her hands as she felt the tears coming. She cried for the first time in a long time and collapsed into her captain's chair. She felt like something was missing and deep down she knew what that was…it was just unattainable and she was going to have to eventually accept that.

"Get over it Chris," she told herself angrily, "It wasn't meant to be…you shouldn't have fallen for him in the first place, so just knock it off!"

But she couldn't stop the tears that continued to flow down her cheeks. Her heart was rebelling against what her mind was telling her…and she wasn't sure which one to follow…

…

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	14. Out to Sea

Chapter 13: Out to Sea

Griffin was moping around the galley early the next morning. Edgar shot him a concerned look and exchanged a glance with his wife.

"You worried about your girlfriend?" asked Matt with a smirk as he walked in and fixed himself a pot of coffee.

Griffin looked away sharply, "I don't want to talk about Chris right now," he muttered, feeling a wave of sadness wash over him

Matt raised a questioning eyebrow and glanced at Edgar and Jack, wondering if they knew what was going on. They shrugged and shook their heads as they cast worried glances at Griffin.

"Did she dump you or something?" asked Matt just as Norman walked into the galley followed by a sleepy-eyed Baylee.

Griffin shot Matt a warning look.

"I said I don't want to talk about it," he said firmly, but the upset look in his eyes told Matt that Griffin really was hurting inside.

"I thought you were the one who told us to stop moping and to open up and talk about it when bad stuff happens," replied Matt as he leaned on the counter, "You're the one who got mister set-in-his-ways to open up to all of us, remember? So why don't you talk to us?"

Griffin shot Matt an irritated look through narrow eyes. He hesitated for a moment before he replied.

"She…she didn't dump me. At least not on her own terms. She didn't have much of a choice."

Norman frowned at that and exchanged a knowing look with Edgar.

"Sig?" he asked.

Griffin nodded, "Apparently he told Chris to stay away with me for the time being."

"Well that's not so bad honey," said Baylee as she ran a hand through her son's ruffled hair, "He didn't say forever…he said for now. Maybe he wants to just wait it out and see if Chris really is who she says she is?"

Griffin shot his mom a despairing look, "Well maybe even if Dad approves it still won't work out. I mean…she's a captain. She's got other things to worry about other than me and I don't know if Dad would ever really let us date or anything. Maybe…maybe its for the best."

Jack rolled her eyes at that as she walked over to Griffin and smacked him gently on the cheek. Griffin shot her a startled look and took a step back at the furious look in her eyes.

"You can't be that stupid!" she exclaimed, "You love that woman, we can all see that! And from what I saw last night, she loves you too. I think you're both being ridiculous and stubborn. Sure she's a captain but that doesn't mean she can't have a social life!"

Jack sighed in exasperation as she walked back over to Edgar. He was smirking at her reaction and gave her a loving look as she walked back over to him. His wife always was a fighter with a heck of a temper but for good reasons. He wouldn't trade her for anyone else in the world.

"It must be a Norwegian thing," she muttered as she glanced up at Edgar.

Edgar pointed at himself and gave her a shocked look.

"Who? Me?" he asked innocently, "Oh I loved you the moment I saw you!"

Jack gaped and hit Edgar lightly on the arm.

"You did not! You hated me! You did everything you could to keep Sig from hiring me because I was a woman! And then you gave me hell when I was on the boat that first season, so don't go acting like a saint Edgar Hansen!"

Edgar laughed at Jack's reaction and pulled her into a tight hug.

"I know," he murmured into her ear, "But I did love you at first sight…I just kept you at arms distance. Thankfully I saw the error of my ways…otherwise I wouldn't be married to the feistiest, sexiest woman in the world."

Jack smirked as she leaned up and kissed him.

Norman and Matt started gagging and pretending to throw up on the floor, much to Baylee's amusement.

"Aw, leave them alone!" she exclaimed, "They're in love!"

"Yeah but do they have to always remind us?" asked Matt, wrinkling his nose in disgust.

Jack rolled her eyes at Matt and kissed Edgar again, causing Matt to yell loudly and make a mad-dash out of the room.

Griffin smirked slightly at the mayhem. Just a typical day on the Northwestern.

"Don't worry honey," said Baylee as she began to clean up the mugs the crew had left on the counter, "It'll work out. Just keep your mind on your job and you and Chris can meet up and talk maybe after the season's through."

Griffin nodded, still feeling a growing sense of sadness as he thought about Chris and the look on her face the night before when she said good-bye. He sighed and turned to follow the crew out onto the deck…

…

"Let's go boys and girls!" shouted Chris over the loud hailer.

"Chris!"

Chris whirled around in her chair and looked down at the docks to see who was calling her name. It was her sister, Madison, waving wildly. Chris smirked and opened her window.

"Just wanted to wish you good luck!" said Madison, "I'll be waiting at the docks when you return!"

"Alright! Thanks sis! Love you!" shouted Chris as she waved at her sister, shaking her head, "That girl's crazy…but I love her!" she said to herself.

Chris started up the main engine on the Hannah Boden and the boat roared to life. She gave her sister a final wave as the boat began to pull away from the docks, her engines warming up for the journey ahead. She smiled at the sound, feeling her spirits lift slightly at the realization that she really was about to go out into the Bering Sea for the first time…

…

The Dutch Harbor Crab Fishing Fleet made their way out of the harbor. Nearly every boat was making its way down the narrow channel and into the vast sea ahead.

The Cornelia Marie was still at the docks, waiting on yet another round of repairs for their main engine. Phil Harris was cursing up a storm and stalking along the deck angrily.

Josh was bored and starting to get tired of waiting for these people to repair the boat while his dad's blood pressure sky-rocketed. He sighed and stood up, walking over to his dad.

"Hey, pops. Why don't you and I head over to the Elbow Room and get us a drink or two? Calm the nerves a bit?"

Phil muttered angrily under his breath and cursed his engine before he replied.

"Yeah…I guess. Not like I can do much else besides wait for these worthless people to fix my baby."

"That's the spirit," laughed Josh, "Come on…lets get outta here."

…

Chris felt her heart soar with a mixture of fear and excitement as she pushed the throttle to full speed ahead. The Hannah Boden glided smoothly over the choppy water and it felt like she was flying.

Her mind drifted back to Griffin and she shook her head angrily.

"Stay focused Chris," she told herself with a slight frown, "Stay focused…"

…

PLEASE REVIEW!!

YAY!! The muses ran off earlier but I caught them! Lol…hope you enjoyed the chapter!! And thanks as always for reviewing!!


	15. Benefit of the Doubt

**A/N: Hey archer (Madison) I wasn't sure what you look like so my description of your character might be off : ) Just FYI. LOL… : )**

Chapter 14: Benefit of the Doubt

"First pot of the season!" shouted Billy happily as the pot slid off the launcher.

Chris leaned out the window and cheered with her crew as the pot sunk into the Bering Sea. She smiled as she saw the high moral that seemed to radiate from the crew. They had gotten along well back at the docks, she just hoped it would stay that way during the season.

Chris leaned back in her seat and put the boat into gear. They had a long couple days of setting pots. She sighed and glanced at her radio. She wondered what Griffin was doing right now…

…

Meanwhile, back in Dutch Harbor…

"I swear Josh I'm gonna throttle that guy if he doesn't fix my baby!"

Josh rolled his eyes at his dad as he held the door of the Elbow Room open for him.

"Yes Dad…you've told me that four times now on our way over here."

Phil muttered under his breath and sighed as he sat down on a bar stool.

Danni was just serving another customer some lunch when she saw Phil and Josh walk in. She shot them an encouraging smile and walked over to them.

"So…repairs aren't going well?" she asked, sympathetically.

Phil shook his head, "No and the guy that's supposed to fix it is a moron! It's gonna take forever…we're going to be so far behind the other boats."

"Dad I told you to stop getting so upset," scolded Josh, "Remember what happened last year? We almost lost you! Let's not go through that crap again, okay?"

Phil nodded reluctantly, "Yeah…yeah I know."

Just then, Madison ran down the stairs from the room above the tavern and walked quickly over to the bar. She smoothed down her shirt and ran a hand through her hair as she glanced at Danni.

"Sorry I'm late," she murmured quietly.

Danni smirked, "It's okay. I saw you rushing out before the sun rose this morning to say bye to your sister."

Madison raised an eyebrow in surprise, "You saw me?"

Danni laughed, "Yeah…I was up an hour before you saying bye to Blake. Let me guess, you came back in and went upstairs to get dressed, only to fall asleep instead."

Madison nodded and smiled guiltily.

Josh was gaping openly at Madison while she talked to Danni. She was beautiful with a great figure and silky brown hair. Her hazel eyes were captivating and Josh was in a trance.

Phil saw the look on his son's face and smirked. He reached over and pushed Josh's chin up, forcing him to close his gaping mouth.

"It's not polite to stare you know," he muttered under his breath.

Josh shot him an irritated look just as Madison walked over to them.

"Hey! You're Captain Phil Harris!" she exclaimed happily, "Why aren't you out fishing?"

"We had some mechanical issues," muttered Phil as anger rose up in him again.

Josh patted his dad's back to calm him down and shook his head.

"Yeah and Dad's getting himself all worked up over it," he said as he flashed Madison a smile, "That's the last thing his blood pressure needs right now."

Madison was taken back by how good-looking Josh was. She found herself smiling back at him and fidgeting slightly.

Phil noticed her reaction and smirked.

"Well, um, is there anything I can get you boys?" asked Madison after a moment.

"I'll have the strongest brew of coffee you got," said Phil as he rubbed his tired eyes.

Madison gave him a sympathetic look and nodded as she turned to Josh.

"I'll take the same," he replied.

Madison smiled, "Alright, coming right up!"

Phil turned to give his son an amused grin as Madison turned away.

"Well looks like someone's got himself a girlfriend!" he laughed.

Josh shot his dad another irritated glance, "I heard that Danni hired someone else to work here but I had no idea that she was going to be that pretty."

Phil laughed, "Well son, you're not gonna believe this."

Josh raised a questioning eyebrow as he looked at his dad.

"She's Chris Cotter's older sister."

Josh about fell off the barstool when he heard that.

"She's a _Cotter_?" he exclaimed, "No way!"

Phil nodded, "Yep. Not the best kind to be hanging around, Josh."

Josh frowned at his dad and shook his head in protest.

"That's not always true you know," he muttered, "You can't judge someone based on what their parents did. It's not their fault their dad pulled that stupid prank on the Northwestern."

Phil nodded in agreement, "I'm with you on that one, son…but try telling that to Sig! That man has one 

hell of a grudge against the Cotter clan."

Josh shook his head, "Well then that's not right. They both deserve the benefit of the doubt in my opinion."

Phil shot his son a highly-amused look, "I agree…but you're just saying that cause she's pretty."

Josh smirked and glanced away. He couldn't argue with that one. He saw Madison walking back over to them with two mugs of coffee in her hands. He turned to his dad and hissed quickly under his breath:

"Well…it sure does help!"

…

Two days later…

"Hey Griff, where's that bait?" called Matt.

Griffin rushed over to the pot and slid inside to hang the bait, apologizing as he did so.

Matt shot Edgar an irritated look. Edgar sighed and gave Griffin a concerned glance. Ever since they had left the docks Griffin had not been himself. He was quieter and had a faraway look in his eyes. Everyone knew why, but didn't say anything. But they all knew that Griffin was going to have to step up and get over it eventually or he wouldn't be of much use to them.

Sig was sitting up in the wheelhouse looking at the monitor that displayed the deck where the crew was working. He frowned when he saw that Griffin was slacking off and moving slower than usual. He knew that it was because of Chris and he felt a mixture of guilt and irritation rise up in him. Just as he was reaching for the loud hailer system, the radio sputtered.

"Northwestern, Northwestern, you on this one?"

Sig raised his eyebrows in surprise. There was only one female captain in the fleet and there was no mistaking that voice. He hesitated before he grabbed the radio to reply.

"This is the Northwestern, what do you need Captain Cotter?"

Chris stiffened slightly at the sound of Sig's voice. She knew she should have expected him to answer the radio, but part of her had been hoping that it would've been Griffin.

"Um, I was just wondering how you guys were doing," she stammered, slapping the palm of her head to her forehead. She sounded ridiculous, even to herself.

Sig smirked when he heard the nervous tension in her voice. He knew just as well as she did the real reason she was calling to check in with them.

"You mean, how _Griffin's_ doing?" he asked with an amused laugh.

Chris' eyes grew wide and she froze. How was she supposed to respond to that? After a moment, Sig sighed, breaking the awkward silence.

"I was wondering how long it'd take for you to radio in," he said quietly, "We're doing fine. Just finishing up setting this last string then we're gonna turn and head over to the string we set a couple days ago. As for Griffin…he's moping. How's your crew doing?"

Chris was still trying to find something to say. She wasn't sure why Sig was being civil about this whole issue. Although he had a very tense edge to his voice when he spoke about Griffin.

"Um, we, uh…yeah we're fine," she stammered, "We're setting our last string too then heading over to pick up our first string. Um…the crew's okay."

"And you?" pressed Sig. He hated the thought of his son and a Cotter being together, but if Griffin's reaction to not being able to be with Chris was any indication, he was sure that Chris wasn't taking it well either.

Chris bit her lower lip, trying to keep back the emotion that hit her out of nowhere. A single tear fell down her cheek and she wiped it away quickly, ashamed at herself for allowing a guy to get to her like this.

"I…I'm…holding up," she said, unsteadily.

Sig heard the emotion in her voice and another wave of guilt hit him. These two kids were falling apart at the seams just because they couldn't see each other.

"You're a really bad liar," he said after a moment.

Chris smiled slightly and leaned back in her seat.

"Yeah…that's what I've been told," she said quietly.

Sig sighed in resignation, "Okay…fine. You two win. I'm sick of seeing Griffin moping around and I'm starting to get sick of hearing you pretend you're okay. So in a couple hours when they're done setting the string, I'm going to get Griffin up here and make him call you so the two of you will stop driving me insane!"

Chris' eyes flew open wide at that. She smiled and covered her mouth with her hand to keep from crying out happily. Sig was trying to sound tough but she could tell that he was beginning to give in.

"Thank you," she murmured.

Sig rolled his eyes in his wheelhouse and sighed.

"Don't mention it…really…don't."

…

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**

**Thanks so much to everyone who's reading this story!! : ) **

**It's turning out to be much longer than I thought it would be!! But I guess that's a good thing right? **


	16. In Love With a Girl

**I was listening to this song right before I wrote this chapter…I think it's called "In Love With a Girl" by Gavon DeGraw (sp??) but I'm not one-hundred percent sure. It's just the main line of the song…it's really good and it reminds me a lot of the women in this story and it fit this chapter well so I decided to use it for the title! **

Chapter 15: In Love With a Girl

"There you go boys," said Madison as she sat down the mugs of coffee on the bar in front of Phil and Josh Harris.

Josh flashed her a rather charming smile and nodded his thanks. Madison felt her heart do a little flip and she turned around to hide her obnoxiously happy grin.

As she turned around, Danni saw the look on her face. She was cleaning the other side of the bar when she glanced at Madison. She smirked and shook her head slightly as Madison walked over to her.

"Oh my gosh!" hissed Madison under her breath, "He is _so_ hot! I had no idea Phil Harris' son was that good-looking!"

Danni tried to stifle her laugh, "Sounds like someone's got it bad!"

Madison sighed and glanced over her shoulder, only to catch Josh staring right back at her. She smiled and gave him a little wave, causing him to blush bright red.

"And it looks like he's got it bad for you too," laughed Danni quietly.

Madison turned back to face Danni and squealed softly.

"Oh my gosh!" she whispered, "He was staring right at me!"

Danni smiled slightly, "_Was_? Hun, he still is."

Madison's eyes shone happily as she tried desperately not to jump up and down for joy.

"Oh, Danni!" she said suddenly feeling very nervous, "What do I do?"

Danni rolled her eyes, "You talk to him!"

"But his dad's right there," said Madison despairingly, "I can't _really_ talk to him while Phil's sitting beside of him."

Danni smiled, "I'll take care of it…just give me a second."

Madison nodded and turned to put away some of the dishes that were sitting by the sink.

Danni walked over to a table near the far corner of the Elbow Room and started to wipe it with a rag. After a moment, she turned and called out to Phil.

"Hey Phil? Can you come over here for a second? I wanted to talk to you about something."

Phil glanced over at her and nodded as he stood up.

"Yeah, sure," he said as he made his way over to Danni.

Madison smirked slightly and shook her head. Danni was turning out to be a really good friend.

Josh glanced up at Madison and smiled, pleased that since his dad was now out of earshot, he could talk to this good-looking woman.

"So," he said after a second, "I hear you're Chris Cotter's sister."

Madison stiffened slightly at that. She nearly forgot that almost the entire fleet didn't like her family. She wondered if Josh was one of them and hesitated before answering.

"Yes," she said holding her head a little higher as she walked over to him, "I'm Madison Cotter."

Josh couldn't help but smile slightly at the fierce look in her eyes and the proud tilt of her head. She wasn't afraid to admit that she was a Cotter and he liked that. He nodded in approval as he looked up at her.

"Well Madison," he said as he extended his hand, "It's an honor to meet you. I'm Josh Harris."

Madison was surprised at his reaction. She was pleasantly surprised to see that her last name didn't deter him from talking to her. She took his hand and smiled.

"Likewise, Mr. Harris."

Josh winced at that, "Oh, no misters please! It's just Josh."

Madison laughed slightly, "Okay…then it's a pleasure to meet you, Josh."

"Much better," said Josh as he smiled. Her laugh was beautiful and he felt his heart skip at least one beat at its joyous sound, "So…are you busy tonight?"

Madison raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Why?"

Josh shrugged and glanced away, wondering if he was coming on to her too quickly.

"Just thought you'd like to hang out…go see a movie or something."

Madison smirked, "Joshua Harris, are you asking me out on a date?"

Josh gave her a sheepish grin and nodded, "Yeah…I think I am."

Madison leaned over the counter until she was a mere three inches from his face.

"Then it's a date…"

…

Meanwhile, out on the Bering Sea…

Chris was sitting in her chair in the wheelhouse, tapping the armrest impatiently. Sig had said that he'd have Griffin call her in two hours, but that had been three hours ago. She sighed, wondering if he had changed his mind or forgotten about it entirely. A more alarming thought went through her mind…what if Griffin didn't want to talk to her? He was heartbroken when she had backed away from him and told him that they couldn't be together. Maybe he didn't want anything more to do with her now…

"Forty-two!" shouted a voice over the intercom.

Chris jumped slightly and grabbed her pencil from behind her ear, jotting down the numbers on a chart. 

They had just hauled their first pot of the season and it wasn't half-bad.

"Nice!" she shouted over the loud hailer, "Let's check the next few pots and if the numbers are good, we'll set 'em back!"

The crew cheered as another pot was hauled onto the boat, stuffed full of King Crab.

"Eighty-seven!" shouted Billy.

Chris gave a little shout of joy and grabbed the mike.

"That's what I'm talkin about!" she shouted, "Yeah…we'll set these bad boys back."

The crew was in high spirits. Setting back the pots meant a lot less work than hauling, stacking, and then resetting somewhere else.

Chris began to punch some numbers into her calculator to make some estimates when the radio crackled above her.

"Hannah Boden, Hannah Boden, this is the Northwestern, do you copy?"

Chris' mouth flew open when she recognized the voice. She grabbed the radio quickly and began to talk excitedly.

"Griffin? It's Chris!"

Griffin was sitting in his dad's chair up in the wheelhouse. He was all smiles when he heard her voice over the radio.

"Hey Chris!" he shouted as his eyes gleamed happily, "How are you?"

Chris felt another uncharacteristic wave of emotion hit her.

"I…I'm fine, the boat's fine…we're hauling good numbers…how are you?" she stammered, too excited and overwhelmed with emotion to think straight.

Sig was standing behind Griffin. He shook his head and rolled his eyes as he listened to the young couple chat excitedly over the radio. He patted his son's shoulder as he turned to leave to give them some privacy. He disappeared back into the galley and sat down at the table, sipping on his coffee.

Edgar raised an eyebrow at him as he came in. The crew had been given an unexpected hour long break after setting their last string and were all in the galley getting a bite to eat.

"So," said Edgar, "Why's Griff up in the wheelhouse?"

Jack glanced over at Sig in surprise and waited for him to respond. She and Baylee exchanged a curious look as they finished making some sandwiches for the boys.

"Uh, he's talking to someone on the radio," Sig replied, not looking up from his coffee.

Matt shot Sig a disbelieving look as he sat down across from him at the table.

"This someone isn't who I'm thinking it is, is it?" he asked as Norman sauntered in to the room.

Sig smirked slightly, "Maybe."

"There's no way in hell that you're letting him talk to her," said Jack in disbelief.

Sig gave her a look and glanced away quickly. Jack gaped in shock.

"No way…oh my…Sig!" she shouted as she ran over to give her captain a hug, "Oh I knew you'd come around!"

Sig nearly swallowed his coffee the wrong way as he was nearly knocked out of his seat by an overjoyed Jack.

Baylee covered her mouth with her hands and shot Sig a grateful look.

"Oh, hun I'm so proud of you! This must mean the world to Griff!"

Sig rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah…just don't think I'm going soft," he said shooting a glare around at his crew.

Norman laughed, "Aw, Sig's giving in!" he said as he shot his brother a look.

Sig glared back at him as he sipped his coffee.

Edgar smirked, "Well I can't imagine why," he said, shooting Jack an amused look, "Between my wife and his I don't think he had much of a choice!"

Jack and Baylee both hit Edgar upside the head and shouted their protests. Edgar cried out in panic and tried to dodge the blows, much to the crew's amusement.

Matt was laughing so hard he nearly fell out of his seat.

"That's what you get for messing with two tough women!" he exclaimed, as he tried to calm himself down.

Sig shook his head and sighed as he stood up and scooted closer to the door.

"Yeah and that's what I get for hiring two women to work on my boat…"

Baylee and Jack didn't give Sig enough time to finish his sentence. They gave each other a quick, knowing glance as they turned to run after him. Sig's eyes grew wide at the sight and he took off out of the galley and ran into the sanctuary of his stateroom, causing the entire crew to laugh uproariously at the sight.

"Okay," said Norman as he leaned on the counter, "From now on, whenever Sig says something we don't like…we sick the women on him!"

…

About an hour later Griffin came down from the wheelhouse, a big grin on his face. Sig had returned to the galley once Baylee and Jack had calmed down.

The crew exchanged amused looks when they saw the look on Griffin's face.

"So I take it your conversation went well?" asked Sig as his son went over to poor some coffee for himself.

His smile only widened at the question, "Yeah…she really likes me, Dad," he said as he slid in beside Jack and Edgar.

Jack gave Griffin a hug, "Well I'm happy for you," she said as she shot Sig a look that clearly meant that he wasn't to say anything bad about Chris.

Sig rolled his eyes at Jack as he looked back over at his son.

"She told you that?" he asked.

Griffin nodded, the smile never leaving his face for a second. His blue eyes were sparkling with joy as he gazed down at his coffee, lost in his own thoughts.

"Yeah…and I like her a lot too," he said, glancing up at his dad, "And…she's not a bad person you know. She's not like her father…she's different."

Sig sighed and looked away for a second. He was just getting used to the idea of accepting Chris as just another Bering Sea captain, but the thought of her dating his son still didn't sit well with him. He wanted to trust Chris, but he also wanted to make sure that his son didn't get himself hurt. And from what Sig could tell, Griffin was head over heals.

"Well, let's just see how things go, okay?" he asked quietly as he stood to go back up into the wheelhouse.

Baylee and Jack shot him warning looks and he shook his head in exasperation.

"You two drive me insane, you know that right?" he asked as he headed for the door.

"Yeah…that's partially why we do it," replied Baylee, giving her husband a wink.

Sig muttered something under his breath as he walked up the stairs to the wheelhouse.

Baylee and Jack exchanged victorious looks and gave each other a high-five. The two women were beginning to get along a lot better than they had last year. They were actually starting to become good friends.

Edgar shook his head, "Well…I for one am just glad that I'm on your side," he said as he pulled his wife closer to him and gave her a kiss.

Griffin smirked at the sight and shook his head. He sighed slightly and glanced away as his mind traveled back to Chris. At least his dad was more open to the idea of accepting Chris. That was all he could ask for and all he could really do…the rest was up to Chris. She had to prove to Sig that she really was a trustworthy and good person and captain.

Griffin tried to hide a laugh as he remembered what she had told him on the radio. He couldn't wait to see what it was she had in store for the unsuspecting Northwestern crew…

…

**PLEASE REVIEW!!**

**Thanks so much to all of you guys who have been reviewing!! : )**

**I REALLY want to write another chapter today because I'm excited about what Chris is gonna do. : ) But it all depends on what time allows me to do…I got some stuff to do to prepare for college so we'll see how much time I have after that. **


	17. The Prank

**A/N: The idea for this prank comes from Archermusician!! So I give her full-credit!! : )**

Chapter 16: The Prank

Later that evening, Danni walked up the stairs to her room above the Elbow Room. She yawned and stretched, ready for a good long rest after a busy day. When she opened the door, she was surprised to see Madison rushing about the room with a hairbrush in one hand and about three outfits draped over her other arm.

"Oh! Danni!" exclaimed Madison with relief, "You have to help me! I don't know what to do with my hair, these clothes…what the heck do I wear?"

Danni held up a hand to stop the frantic young woman.

"Slow down there, Madison," she said, eyes wide with surprise, "What's going on? Why are you freaking out?"

Madison ran a hand through her tangled brown hair and tried to take a deep breath to calm herself down.

"Danni…he's going to be here in one hour and I have no clue what to do!" she exclaimed, eyes growing wide with panic.

"Who's going to be here?" asked Danni, utterly lost as to why her new employee was flipping out on her.

"Josh Harris!" shouted Madison in exasperation, "He asked me out and I look horrible! My hair's a wreck and I can't find anything to…"

"He asked you out?" interrupted Danni with a wide grin, "No way! Okay…now, let's stay calm. Don't worry about a thing, I'll get you all dressed up and ready to go. Just trust me, okay?"

Madison sighed gratefully, "Thank you, Danni…you're a lifesaver!"

Danni rolled her eyes, "Alright then, let's get to work!"

An hour later, Josh Harris walked into the Elbow Room looking rather nervous. He had combed his hair and gelled it, flipping it up slightly in the front. He shaved his goatee to perfection and put on a black, button-up collared shirt with matching black slacks. He fidgeted as he waited for Madison to come downstairs, holding a rose in his hand.

"I heard the door open!" hissed Danni, "Stop messing with your makeup, you look beautiful!"

Madison shot Danni a worried look and glanced one more time at the mirror. Danni had done a wonderful job on her hair and makeup. She had straightened Madison's hair, flipping out just a little on the ends to make it look natural. She applied just a little makeup, explaining to Madison that she didn't want to overdue it and that the best way was to go as natural as possible. She had a touch of brown eyeliner to show off her eyes, a light coat of mascara and a dash of blush to give her color. Danni had also lent Madison her little black dress, the same dress that she wore on her first real date with Blake. It came just a touch above the knees and showed off her figure without coming off too strong.

"Okay," said Madison with a sigh, "I'm ready."

Danni nodded, "Good. Alright, you go downstairs and I'll stay up here to give you guys some space. Don't worry about waking me up when you get back…you can tell me all the juicy details in the morning. Stay out nice and late too," finished Danni with a wink.

Madison blushed slightly as she rolled her eyed at Danni.

"Alright, well stop standing around!" exclaimed Danni, "Your lover-boy is down there waiting for you, get going!"

Madison nodded and took a deep breath as she walked down the stairs. He wouldn't tell her where he was taking her…he told her that it was a secret but to dress nice. She was a nervous wreck as she finally made it down to the bottom of the stairs. She glanced around the room and saw Josh standing a few feet away looking out the window.

She smiled, suddenly feeling her nervousness vanish at the sight of him. She cleared her throat a little and Josh whirled around in surprise, gaping opening at the sight of her standing at the bottom of the stairs in a little black dress and black heels. He swallowed and tried to find the right words to say to her.

"You…you look beautiful," he said after a moment.

Madison smiled when she noticed the red rose in his hand. This crabber was quite the charmer.

"Thank you…you look rather handsome yourself," she replied as she walked over to him.

Josh handed her the rose and gave her a gentle hug, "Are you ready?"

"That depends," said Madison giving him a scrutinizing look, "Where are we going?"

Josh smiled at her, "Well…not that far actually," he replied, "I hope you don't mind…I'm not really the fancy type, but I arranged a little something special for you."

Madison smiled, intrigued by Josh's demeanor. He was charming and quite gentleman-like. She wasn't used to being treated this way by guys like him.

"Okay then," she said narrowing her eyes at him playfully as she wrapped her arm around his, "Lead on!"

…

Billy was laughing gleefully as he cut another piece of rubber-like piping. Ashley was shaking her head worriedly while Carter and Sasha glanced at each other mischievously.

"How's it coming along?" asked Chris with a smirk on her face as she poked her head into the galley.

The near-evil look in Billy's eyes answered her question.

"We're almost done," said Billy with another goofy laugh, "Did you finish your little project?"

Chris smiled broadly and nodded, holding up a solid black, water-tight box. She had just gotten off the radio with Sig. Apparently the Northwestern was having a hard time finding the crab. Their last string averaged a mere ten crab per pot, so Chris and the crew of the Hannah Boden decided to do something to help them out…and to hopefully lift their spirits.

"This is going to be the best prank ever!" shouted Carter.

Sasha laughed and nodded in agreement as she helped the crew finish up with their portion of the prank.

"I just hope they take it well," murmured Ashley, "I mean…the last Cotter prank didn't go over well, remember?"

Billy shot Ashley an irritated look, "That's kind of the whole point of this prank…to make up for the past 

and to create positive memories, not bad ones."

Ashley frowned, "Yeah I know that…I just worry, you know?"

Sasha nodded in understanding, "Yeah I get where you're coming from. But don't worry…this is gonna be a good one! And how can Sig be irritated by what Chris is doing? She's actually helping him!"

"Did you finish the shirt?" asked Carter with a wide grin.

Chris nodded, "Oh yeah…it's ready to go. We're coming up on their next string in about an hour. The bad news is that the Northwestern's only going to be half an hour behind us so we gotta move and we gotta move fast! I'm going back up to put her in full throttle."

As Chris ran back up the stairs to the galley, Billy turned to face the rest of the crew.

"Alright guys! Let's kick this up a notch…we gotta have it ready in time or its not happening!"

That seemed to inspire the crew. Sasha and Ashley hurried to grab more of the necessary tools and supplies they would need while Carter helped Billy finish up their portion of the prank. They had a lot of work to do in an hour…

…

Two hours later…

"Has he pulled it yet?" asked Billy.

"Shouldn't he be there by now?" asked Sasha.

"Where is he?" asked Carter.

"How much longer?" asked Ashley.

"If you all would stay quiet so I can listen to the radio, I may be able to find out!" snapped Chris.

She smirked at her overly eager crew who had now piled into the wheelhouse to see what was going to happen. They had managed to complete their prank in plenty of time and then get out of the area to avoid detection.

Chris leaned over to look at the radar. She searched for the Northwestern, smiling excitedly when she found them.

"Okay…he's right on top of it now…"

…

"Alright Edgar, first one's on the bow!" said Sig over the loud hailer.

It had been a long day of hauling nearly empty pots and now the weary and upset crew was about to face an entire night hauling yet another string.

"I wanna go home!" sang Matt as he waited for Edgar to toss the hook.

"So…tired…can't…go…on," said Griffin as he crawled out of the galley and onto the deck.

Norman smirked at the sight and shook his head and Jack laughed in amusement as Griffin stood up and 

sauntered slowly over to them.

"Well I know one thing," muttered Jack, "There'd better be crab in this string…and a lot of them too."

Nick sneered and nodded his head in agreement as the pot began to slowly rise out of the Bering Sea.

"What the…?" asked Edgar in surprise as he gazed over the railing at the pot.

The crew exchanged curious glances as they ran over to the rail to see what Edgar was looking at. As the pot came up over the rail, the crew gaped in astonishment.

"That can't be what I think it is!" exclaimed Griffin, "There's no way…"

As the pot hit the launcher, Matt and Norman quickly untied the door and opened it up. The reached inside and pulled out what looked like a person inside the pot.

"It's a dummy!" laughed Matt as the laid it on the sorting table.

"Look at the shirt!" exclaimed Griffin, his eyes glittering with happiness as he realized what was happening, "Guys! Look at the shirt on the dummy!"

Edgar walked over to see what it was Griffin was freaking out about. He started laughing when he read the shirt out loud.

Jack had to grab the side of the sorting table as she began to laugh. She was crying she was laughing so hard at the sight of the dummy. It was dressed up like a woman with the Hannah Boden signature on the jacket and a pink t-shirt with the slogan: "Who Says a Woman Can't Be Captain?" painted in black. The dummy's face was colored to look like it had lipstick and long eye-lashes and the bottom part of a mop had been dyed black and used as a wig.

Sig had seen all the commotion from his wheelhouse and had seen the crew pull the dummy out of the pot. He was laughing too, but when he glanced out the window and saw half his crew lying on the deck and crying because they were laughing so hard, he just had to come out and see what was going on. He walked down the stairs from the wheelhouse and ran out on deck.

"What's so funny about…?" he stopped when he saw the dummy.

The crew froze, wondering what their captain's reaction was going to be to the prank. A slow smile crept across Sig's face. He shook his head and laughed slightly when he realized who the dummy was supposed to be. Then he read the t-shirt and started laughing louder.

Baylee came outside to see what was going on. She saw Sig laughing hysterically at something on the sorting table and ran over to see what it was. About a minute later, she too was laughing at the rather unusual prank.

"Hey Sig," said Edgar, standing near the pot. He had a black box in his hand and a piece of paper in the other hand, "I think this is for you."

Sig reached out to take the paper from Edgar, wiping his eyes on his sleeve. On the front it said: "Sorry about the past…I hope the future is bright for everyone." Sig smiled slightly at that and flipped the paper over. On the back was a hand-drawn map of a section of the Bering Sea. It was rather detailed and had a spot circled in the middle of it. Off to the side it read: "Heard fishing wasn't so good. We found a hot-spot. Pulling close to a hundred per pot. See you soon!"

Sig shook his head in bewilderment as the crew gathered around him and looked over his shoulder to read the note. They all gave each other knowing smiles.

"Looks like somebody really wants to be your friend Sig," said Baylee with a smile.

Sig smirked as he noticed a little note at the bottom of the map: "Tell Griffin I said hi."

Sig turned to look at his son and handed him the paper, "Read the bottom right corner."

Griffin's entire face lit up and he laughed, "See Dad? Told you she wasn't so bad."

Jack gave Griffin a hug, "Yeah, you're girlfriend's pretty cool!"

Sig sighed, "Alright…well, looks like after we haul this string, we're moving, so let's get to it."

"What do we do with the dummy?" asked Matt, "Toss it over?"

Edgar's eyes lit up and he shot Jack a look. Jack recognized the look and shook her head.

"Oh boy, I think Edgar's got an idea and my guess is that it has something to do with fire…maybe bombs…firecrackers…you never really know with him."

The crew laughed as they watched Edgar retreat into the galley to gather his supplies. Sig shook his head as he walked back inside to go up into the wheelhouse. He sighed as he walked up the stairs.

"My little brother's certifiable…"

…

PLEASE REVIEW!!

LOL!! I liked writing this chapter!! It was happy! This story's been soooo depressing that it was nice to write a kinda goofy-happy chapter. I gotta feeling that the rest of the story will be on a much happier note than it was when I first started it.

Thanks so much for all the reviews!!


	18. Pull an Edgar

**A/N: This chapter title is an inside joke of sorts with the fan fiction Deadliest Catch forum group, a.k.a. The Dysfunctional Family. : ) **

Chapter 17: Pull an Edgar

Josh led Madison out of the Elbow Room and down to the docks. She glanced up at him with confusion on her face.

"Just trust me," he said with a reassuring smile.

Madison narrowed her eyes but decided to wait and see what he had in store for her. As they walked down the docks they passed some of the older boats of the Bering Sea fleet. Most of them were either skipping this King Crab season due to necessary repair work or they were being put into retirement.

Josh sighed quietly and got a worried look in his eyes. Madison noticed it and remembered that he was supposed to be out there fishing too, not stuck here at the docks. If they didn't head out soon, then over half the season would be over and they would have no money to show for it. She shot him a concerned look, but he quickly covered up his worried stare with a smile.

As they walked down the docks they came up on the Cornelia Marie. The wheelhouse was dark and it looked like no one was on the boat. She thought she could see a table and chairs on the deck with a candle sitting on it. She smiled broadly when she realized what he had done.

Josh jumped onto the boat and turned around to help Madison. She looked down at her heels and frowned. There was no way she was going to be able to climb up on the boat with those things on, so she quickly slipped them off and handed them up to Josh. He smirked and shook his head as he sat them down on the deck and returned to help hoist her onto the boat.

Once she was safely on the deck she glanced around, gaping in astonishment. Josh had set up a small round table with two chairs on the deck. The table was covered by a thin white cloth and had a candle sitting in the center of it with a rose on one side.

"Oh Josh," she breathed, "This is beautiful!"

Josh smiled bashfully, "I'm glad you like it…I was worried you'd be the type who like all that fancy stuff."

Madison shot him an amused look, "Joshua Harris, I come from a long line of fishermen, remember? And I'm working at the Elbow Room…I don't do fancy. This dress and heels are probably the fanciest I've dressed in a long time."

Josh smiled as he pulled out a chair for her to sit down. She glanced up at him and raised an eyebrow.

"And such a gentleman too," she said quietly as he flashed her another charming grin.

"I'll be right back," said Josh as he turned and disappeared into the galley.

Madison looked up at the sky and was surprised to see how bright the stars were. It took her breath away to see the heavens so clearly.

Josh walked back out onto the deck with two plates of food in his hands.

"I must confess, Jake helped me a bit with the cooking," he said as he sat her plate down in front of her.

Madison smirked, "Jake's a good cook, huh?"

Josh rolled his eyes, "Yeah and he never lets me forget it either."

For the next two hours Josh and Madison sat on the deck of the Cornelia Marie laughing and talking the night away. Soon, Madison glanced at her watch and was startled to see how late it was getting.

"Oh, Josh…I really should be getting back," she said nervously, "It's really late."

Josh's eyes twinkled slightly, "There's no way I'm letting you go back to the Elbow Room this late. Not in the dark like this. You know…you could always stay here."

Madison's eyes widened in surprise at his offer.

"But…what about the crew?" she asked, "Aren't they coming back tonight?"

"Nah," said Josh, "They're out partying the night away. They'll be back in the morning sometime and even then they'll all be asleep."

Madison hesitated a moment, considering her options. If she left now she would have to walk down the pitch black, frozen docks alone. But if she stayed…

"Okay," she said after a few seconds, "I'll stay…"

…

"Hey Griff," said Matt with a laugh, "Better say bye to your girlfriend while you still can!"

The crew was waiting in anticipation for Edgar to return to the deck with his supplies. Griffin was laughing and shaking his head. They had left the dummy on the sorting table, unsure as to what to do with it. Matt said to throw it overboard but Edgar had a better idea…

…

Meanwhile, up in the Northwestern wheelhouse…

Sig was looking at the radar screen and smirked when he realized that the Hannah Boden was only a few minutes away from them. He picked up the radio and dialed in.

"Hannah Boden, this is the Northwestern, you there?"

Chris was up in the wheelhouse plotting out their next string of pots. The crew was still waiting to get word from the Northwestern regarding their prank. They were steaming back to the hot-spot they had discovered to pull their pots and Chris was trying to estimate where the next few strings should be dropped in order to haul the most crab. She heard the radio sputter and heard Sig's voice. She smiled and grabbed the radio.

"Northwestern, this is the Hannah Boden…what's going on?" she asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

Sig laughed and cursed the audacity of the feisty female captain.

"What's going on?" he asked with a laugh, "Oh I dunno…we pulled a pot a few minutes ago and we hauled in something rather unusual."

The Hannah Boden crew was laughing hysterically and Chris was trying desperately to keep herself under control.

"Oh? What was it?" she asked, trying to stifle her laugh.

Sig shook his head and cursed again. She was being stubborn, waiting for him to be the first to talk about 

the prank.

"A female captain closely resembling you," he replied, no longer holding back, "With a shirt saying something about who says a woman can't be captain."

Chris started laughing uncontrollably at that. The prank had worked! Her crew was beside themselves with laughter, half of them rolling around on the wheelhouse floor as they listened to the conversation.

"Well now, who would do something like that?" she asked with a laugh, no longer able to hide her amusement.

"Gee, I don't know," replied Sig, "But whoever it was also gave me a little note. Something about moving on and a bright future? Oh, and not to mention a nice little map of a hot-spot."

Chris finally calmed herself down and took a deep breath.

"Oh yeah…it's all coming back to me now," she said, smirking, "Yeah that was us. And yes I'm hoping that there will be a bright future for our boats and crew and I'm hoping that _my_ prank helped with that. As for the hot-spot, yeah just follow us. We're on our way there right now to pick up our string."

Sig smiled slightly. This woman was very persistent, he had to give her that…and she was very good at sucking up.

"Well, Captain Cotter I must say I am impressed," he said, pausing for a moment, "And…I have a feeling the future is bright for us. And for you and your boyfriend."

Chris' mouth flew open at that. Was that Sig's way of saying it was okay for her and Griffin to see each other?

"And as for the hot-spot…yeah we're following you over there right now."

"Wow…are you serious?" stammered Chris in a disbelieving voice.

"Um…yeah, we're turning to follow you as we speak," replied Sig with a smirk.

Chris rolled her eyes and muttered something under her breath before she replied.

"No…about the future and my boyfriend…are you serious?"

Sig hesitated for a moment. He knew now that Chris was serious about being different than her predecessors and that her last name didn't necessarily define her. And she had proven how much she really liked Griffin…Sig could see enough evidence of that in his son.

"Yeah," he said after a moment, "Yeah I'm serious."

Chris let out an involuntary squeal of excitement and her crew cheered. Sig laughed as he listened to them, realizing that he had made the right decision. As much as he hated admitting he was wrong…he had been wrong about her.

"Thanks Sig!" exclaimed Chris, "Um…oh, I mean Captain Hansen!"

"It's Sig, and don't mention it. We'll see you soon."

Sig ended the transmission and leaned back in his chair. He shook his head as he ran a hand through his hair.

"When did I get so soft?"

…

"Okay Griff! This is it!" shouted Matt as they saw Edgar walk out of the galley, "Say your final goodbyes!"

Baylee and Jack took several steps back as Edgar walked over to the sorting table with various objects in his hands. The exchanged knowing looks and shook their heads.

"Let's just hope it's not seal bombs again," muttered Jack.

Norman smirked, "I wouldn't put it past him!"

Griffin went to stand next to Matt and watched as Edgar opened a container and started dousing the dummy down in the fluid. Matt's eyes flew open wide at the sight.

"Edgar…isn't that enough?" he asked, "Edgar? Okay…Edgar that's a lot of freakin' lighter fluid! Edgar…seriously man…stop!"

Edgar grinned wildy and let out an evil laugh as he finished pouring the lighter fluid all over the dummy. Jack was shaking her head and smiling in amusement while Baylee looked rather afraid. Griffin was laughing as he took a few more steps back along with Matt.

Edgar pulled something out of his pocket and dropped several small round objects onto the table.

"Oh…guess he is using seal bombs," said Jack as she retreated to the stern of the boat with Griffin and Matt.

Baylee ran over to them, squealing with fright, "Is he mad?"

Matt laughed, "Oh…you don't even know the half of it."

Jack shook her head, "No…you really don't. Trust me."

Edgar lit a match and the crew braced themselves for the worst. He tossed it onto the dummy and dove behind a plastic bin as the dummy erupted into flames. The fire was so intense that the crew could feel it even at the very end of the boat. Suddenly, loud popping noises filled the air and the crew held their ears as the seal bombs went off.

Sig whirled around in his chair when he heard the seal bombs. He took one glance at the table and shook his head.

"If it's not fire, it's bombs!"

…

PLEASE REVIEW!!

LOL! Yay!! I pulled an Edgar! : )

Not sure how many chapters are left…this is definitely turning out to be a LOT longer than I thought it would be!!

Thanks for all the reviews!! Really appreciated as always!! : )


	19. Shut Up and Fish!

Chapter 18: Shut Up and Fish!

"My, my what do we have here?" asked Chris over the loud hailer.

The crew glanced up from where they were hauling the next string of pots. They glanced at each other in confusion.

"What's she talkin' about?" asked Carter.

Suddenly Ashley's face lit up, "Hey! Look!" she shouted as she pointed off their port side.

Instantly the crew started laughing and cheering.

"Looks like we got ourselves some visitors," laughed Chris, "Perhaps I ought to give them a call?"

The crew cheered as Chris switched over to the radio. She was smiling with joy at the sight of the beautiful white vessel off their port bow.

"Well Captain Hansen, good to see you took my advice," she said with amusement in her voice.

Sig rolled his eyes up in his wheelhouse, "Yeah, guess we did. Griffin's standing on the bow waving his arms like a maniac. Don't really know why…"

Chris laughed and grabbed the binoculars. Sure enough, there was Griffin waving at the Hannah Boden. She smirked and flashed the sodium lights in reply.

"Oh great," muttered Sig, "Now he's giving me the most ridiculously happy, goofy-lookin grin I have ever seen. Thanks…'preciate that."

Chris was beside herself with laughter, "Well I'm glad I made his day…he made mine too. Good luck and good fishing!"

Sig sneered at that, "Gosh you young kids are so overly romantic these days…fine I'll tell him but I won't ever hear the end of it. Good luck and good fishing right back at you."

As Sig ended the call, he switched over to his loud hailer.

"Hey Edgar, you guys ready? We're going to steam over to their second string after we finish dropping this one and we're gonna have to move fast."

"Roger!" shouted Edgar smiling wickedly.

Jack was shaking her head as she tossed the shot of line over the rail. Griffin was smiling and practically skipping over to the bait area while Matt finished untying the stack.

"Hey, what's the kid so happy about?" he called down to the crew.

Norman laughed, "Gee, I don't have a clue…wouldn't have anything to do with that boat over there would it?"

Griffin glanced away sheepishly under the good-natured mocking. Jack came over and gave him a light pat on the shoulder.

"Don't mind them," she whispered, "I'm so very happy for you, Griff! And after this…I think things will be just fine."

Griffin nodded, "I sure hope so…"

…

Three hours later…

"Are you done yet?" asked Edgar as he watched Matt tying something to the line.

"Almost…just one more to go," replied Matt.

"Hey, Norman help me with this thing would you?" asked Jack, "It's heavier than I thought it would be."

After a few more minutes the crew stood back and smiled at their handy-work. Edgar turned to look up at the wheelhouse and gave Sig the thumbs up.

"Alright…send her over!" shouted Sig.

Edgar laughed as he pushed the button and the pot slowly slid off the launcher. The crew was nearly bouncing up and down with excitement as Sig started shouting from the wheelhouse.

"Guys they're only thirty minutes away!" he exclaimed, "We gotta move or they're gonna see us!"

The crew was giddy with excitement as they ran inside and changed out of their work gear before charging up the stairs to the wheelhouse. Sig turned and looked at them like they had all just grown another head.

"What the…?"

"We just want to hear what happens," said Griffin as he pointed at the radio.

Sig smirked and rolled his eyes, "No, you just want to hear your girlfriend."

Griffin shrugged, blushing slightly, "That's always nice too."

"Aw!" breathed Jack, "That's so cute!"

Sig shot her a look, "Please…don't encourage him. It's bad enough as it is."

Jack narrowed her eyes at Sig and leaned back against her husband. Edgar wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder.

Sig pretended to gag at the sight, "Too much mushy stuff," he muttered.

Just then Baylee came up from the galley and ran into the wheelhouse.

"Oh I can't wait for them to pull the pot!" she exclaimed excitedly as she ran over to Sig and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Sig returned the kiss as Baylee sat down on his lap.

Jack raised an eyebrow at Sig and he glared back at her.

"Not a word," he muttered, "Not one single word…"

…

"Okay guys, last pot and we can take a two hour break," announced Chris over the loud hailer.

"Yay," said Billy unenthusiastically.

It had been a long day hauling, re-baiting, and re-setting pot after pot after pot and the crew was ready for a good long sleep.

Sasha tossed the hook and threw the line into the coiler. As the pot came up Sasha got a weird look on her face.

"Um…what the frick is that?" she asked, pointing at the pot as it cleared the railing.

The crew ran over to her but before they could tell what it was, a burst of white powder overwhelmed them. They cried out in surprise as the white cloud fell all over the deck and themselves.

"It's flour!" laughed Billy, "Someone's pranked our pot!"

"Um…guys that's not all they did!" said Ashley, pointing at something inside the pot.

The crew gaped in surprise and slowly started to smile as they recognized the dummy.

"Holy crap!" exclaimed Carter, "Is that the same dummy we made?"

"What the heck is in that pot?" asked Chris over the loud hailer.

"I think it's our old dummy!" shouted Billy, "Not sure…it looks kind of disfigured!"

As the pot hit the launcher, the crew untied the door and dragged the dummy out of the pot and tossed it onto the sorting table. It was definitely the same dummy, but it had undergone a slight transformation. It was dark black and charred all over. Parts of the dummy were burnt off or missing and the mop-wig was burnt down to a few singed pieces of rope. There was a new t-shirt on the dummy and a Northwestern logo jacket.

Chris ran down the stairs from the wheelhouse and onto the deck to get a closer look at the dummy. From the loud laughter of her crew, she had a pretty good idea about what had happened. She took one look at the badly burnt dummy and started to laugh hysterically. As she drew closer she saw what was on the white t-shirt: "Shut Up and Fish!" She nearly fell over as she started laughing even harder at that. Apparently that was her answer to "Who Says a Woman Can't Be Captain?"

She sunk down onto the deck as she became weak from laughing so hard. She remembered when, during one of her many conversations with Danni, that she had heard something about Edgar Hansen being rather pyro. From what she could tell, that was quite an understatement.

After a few moments, the crew began to gather themselves back together.

"Hey!" cried Ashley, "They sent back the black box too!"

Chris stood up and wiped the tears from her eyes as she went over to investigate. She opened up the box and pulled out a note. On the front it said: "The past is the past…live for today and pray for tomorrow." She smiled as she felt a wave of emotion hit her. Sig really was willing to make things better and to forget what had happened so long ago. She flipped the paper over and on the back was a detailed picture of the docks at Dutch Harbor. It had a circle around where the Hannah Boden used to be docked far away from the Northwestern. From the circle extended a line that reached over to where the Northwestern was docked. The line ended beside the Northwestern where another circle was drawn. Inscribed below the drawing it said: "Made a few phone calls and reserved your boat a spot beside ours when we get back home. It'll be permanent if you sign a paper or two in Dutch." Chris shook her head in disbelief at that. But what made her smile widen was the small note on the bottom right corner of the page: "Hey Chris! I'll see you soon! -Griff."

…

PLEASE REVIEW!!

**Another fun chapter to write!! I LOVE pranks!! **

**Okay, I got a super busy weekend ahead. My dad managed to hook me up with a tour of the Coast Guard Airbase tomorrow (Saturday) and then I gotta work more on packing for college (I leave Tuesday) so I don't know how much writing I'll get done. I'm thinking either a really long epilogue or another chapter and an epilogue…not sure yet but I'll do as much writing this weekend as I can. I'd love to finish this story before I leave!! **

**Oh and no I didn't forget Madison!! : ) She'll be in the next chapter/epilogue, promise!!**

**Thanks for all the reviews!!**


	20. Welcome to the Family

**Decided to go ahead and write some more… : )**

**Okay…looks like it'll be a chapter then an epilogue…lol : ) It's always as much a surprise to me as it is to you guys!!**

Chapter 19: Welcome to the Family

Three weeks later…

The Cornelia Marie had set out for the crab season about a week late, but had managed to haul in more crab than nearly half the fleet in almost half the time. The crab gods had been on their side, despite a busted engine and late repairs.

The Time Bandit and the Wizard were the first boats to turn their bows in the direction of Dutch Harbor. With quotas fulfilled and loved ones to see, they raced back to port, full throttle.

The Cornelia Marie fell in alongside the Northwestern as they began to enter the channel that led to the harbor about two days after the Time Bandit and the Wizard. Just behind them, the Hannah Boden steamed into port.

Chris smiled when she saw the Northwestern was just finishing tying off to the docks. She skillfully maneuvered her large vessel alongside theirs and watched as her crew and the crew of the Northwestern helped tie the two boats together.

Chris had called Sig after the prank to say 'touché' and to assure him that she was honored to be docked alongside his boat. The two boats had worked together to haul in the crab, giving each other tips and hot-spots. The relationship that had formed between Sig and Chris was as surprising as it was thrilling for both crews.

Chris smiled when she saw her crew jump onto the Northwestern and start shaking hands and giving each other hugs. They were joking around with each other and talking about the pranks, each claiming theirs was better than the other. If a stranger had seen the interaction between the crews, they would have thought they were life-long friends rather than age-old rivals.

After Chris finished maneuvering the Hannah Boden, she rushed out of the wheelhouse and ran out onto the deck. She saw Griffin running around the deck of the Northwestern, peering around everyone to find her. She smiled and climbed over the rails and onto the boat. She grabbed his arm and he whirled around, eyes brightening with joy. They embraced in a long hug and the two crews turned to watch, knowing and happy smiles on their faces. Griffin pulled back and looked into Chris' eyes for a moment before he leaned down and kissed her.

Loud cheers erupted on the deck as the crews whistled and hollered. Sig came out of the wheelhouse to see what all the commotion was about and started laughing when he saw his son and Chris. After Griffin pulled away, Sig put a hand on Chris' shoulder. She turned around and smirked when she made eye-contact with the skipper. For the first time, the two captains looked at each other as friends.

Sig held out his arms and Chris smiled as she gave him a hug, eliciting another round of applause and cheers from the deckhands.

"Welcome to the fleet," said Sig as he pulled away, "And welcome to the family."

…

PLEASE REVIEW!!

**Super short, I know…but there's gonna be an epilogue and yes Madison will be in it I promise!! : )**

**Not sure if I'll be able to write it tomorrow or Sunday, but I'll do it asap! **


	21. Epilogue

**A/N: There's a quote in this chapter…don't want to say what it is cause I don't wanna spoil the surprise, but I got the quote from watching the movie so I don't know if its one hundred percent accurate. I couldn't tell what one of the names of the islands was so I improvised. But I got it as close as I could!!**

**THIS ONE IS DEDICATED TO MY "DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY!!" LOL…they know who they are : )**

Epilogue

One Year Later…

The time for King Crab season had returned for the fishermen of the Bering Sea. All around Dutch Harbor, captains and deckhands returned to fight the good fight yet again.

Chris Cotter walked down the docks towards her boat, the Hannah Boden. It was tied right alongside the infamous Northwestern on the far side of the docks where the more exclusive boats were docked. She paused when she passed the Cornelia Marie and looked up to see Josh Harris climbing down from a stack of pots.

"Hey Chris!" he shouted as he leapt off the boat, "How's it goin'?"

Chris smiled at her older sister's fiancé. The two had really hit it off while the Cornelia Marie had been stuck on the docks for repairs last King Crab season. Since then they had started seeing each other and before they knew it, one thing led to another and they were engaged.

"Hey Josh!" she cried as she ran over to give him a hug.

_She thought back to what had happened just two months ago in Seattle. Madison had taken a month off from work to stay with Chris in her apartment in Washington. The crews of the Northwestern, Cornelia Marie, and the Hannah Boden had gathered together one night and went to one of the fancier restaurants downtown. Just after they ordered their food, Griffin stood up from his seat and glanced down at Chris. She gave him a rather confused look, which quickly turned into one of astonishment as he went down on one knee. At the same time, across the room, Josh Harris kneeled down in front of Madison…_

"So where's your fiancé?" asked Chris as he pulled away.

Josh smiled broadly at the sound of that, "Oh…she's got some work to do this morning but she'll be back to see us off."

Chris smiled and nodded as she glanced over at the Northwestern. Josh smirked and rolled his eyes.

"You'd better get going," he said with a laugh, "Wouldn't want to keep your man waiting."

Chris smiled and gave Josh another hug before she turned to walk quickly towards the Northwestern. Josh smiled as he turned to go back onto the Cornelia Marie. He was glad to see that the Cotters had finally been accepted in Dutch Harbor…and before long their last names wouldn't be Cotter anymore.

As Chris climbed onto the Northwestern, Edgar yelled from the top of a stack of pots.

"Why if it isn't my nephew's beautiful fiancé!"

Chris smirked up at him, "Hey Edgar! How's it going?"

"Not bad," replied Edgar, "Griffin's driving us all insane though. He won't shut up about you. So do us a favor and go talk to him or something…please?"

Chris laughed at that, "Why I'd be glad to! Where is he?"

"In the wheelhouse," said Edgar as he started to climb down the stack, "Driving my brother insane. And if he's driving Sig insane, then Sig's gonna take it out on us, which will in turn drive us insane, then we'll drive you insane because it's your fault, then you'll drive your crew insane…it's a never ending circle of insanity."

Chris started laughing hysterically at that as she turned to walk toward the wheelhouse.

"I'll end the vicious cycle, Edgar don't worry!" she called as she ran up the stairs.

Sig was sitting in his captain's chair with his head in his hands while Griffin paced back and forth across the wheelhouse.

"She should be here anytime," said Griffin as he glanced at the docks, "They're leaving tonight…she was supposed to come last night…"

"But the plane got delayed," said Sig, "I know…I've heard this since last night, remember? And we've been helping out her crew while they wait. And I've been listening to you ramble and pace for the last two hours."

Griffin shot his dad a look, "I just wanna see her," he mumbled, "Just for a few minutes…"

Sig shot him a sympathetic look. His wife was now on the boat with them so he never had to worry about missing her anymore. And Edgar's wife was a deckhand so Edgar was never lonely either, but Griffin's fiancé was captain of another boat.

"I know," sighed Sig, "I know you miss her…she'll be here soon don't worry."

Griffin ran a hand through his blonde hair as he gazed with troubled blue eyes down at the docks. He sighed and put his hands on his hips as he waited for her to come.

Suddenly, he felt a gentle hand touch his arm and smelled the faint scent of lilac…Chris.

"Miss me much?" she murmured in his ear.

Sig smirked when he saw the look on his son's face as he whirled around to grab his fiancé.

Griffin held her close and murmured loving things into her ear. Just then, Jack stormed into the galley.

"Edgar just said Chris was…!" she stopped and gasped when she saw Chris and Griffin. She gave a slight squeal of excitement as Chris pulled away and turned to hug Jack.

Chris smiled as Jack gave her a squeeze. Jack had always been one of the few people who had believed in her and had stood up for her when no one else would. She would always be grateful for that.

After a few moments, Sig cleared his throat to get their attention.

"We leave in about five hours," he said as his blue eyes clouded, "And…there's something we need to do before we leave. Chris, you're welcome to join us. I think we might actually like to have you there."

Chris furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she gazed at the suddenly very upset-looking captain. But the look in his eyes left no room for any questions so she just nodded, a glimmer of uncertainty in her eyes.

Jack and Griffin glanced away, their eyes suddenly taking on a sad gleam. Chris frowned in concern but 

stayed silent as Sig led them out of the galley.

The rest of the crew was gathered on the deck, shuffling their feet nervously, heads down and eyes tense with a mixture of worry and sadness.

Sig led the crew off the boat and onto the docks. As they walked down the long stretch of dock, snow began to fall, slowly at first then picking up speed as they walked. After a few minutes, they approached the cemetery near the famous Dutch Harbor chapel. Suddenly, realization hit Chris and she felt a wave of sadness and sympathy for the crew of the Northwestern.

Sig stopped by one of the newer graves and gazed down at it. The look in his eyes sent shivers down Chris' spine. Edgar stood beside his brother, guilt and despair filling his usually good-humored expression. Chris remembered what Griffin had told her about Edgar feeling like losing him was partially his fault and despite the crew's protests, he still felt a tug of guilt at losing his best friend.

She watched as Edgar knelt down and laid a hand on the gravestone. She saw him mouth the words "I'm sorry," and bow his head. Chris put a hand over her mouth at the sight and watched as the rest of the crew gathered around him and knelt down, paying their respects to their fellow deckhand and friend.

After awhile, Griffin stood and retreated over to Chris. She held him in her arms and murmured comforting words into his ear while the rest of the crew finished paying their respects to their fallen comrade.

"Okay," breathed Sig as he patted Edgar's shoulder. Edgar stood up slowly and forced himself to tear his eyes away from the headstone.

The crew walked back silently to the Northwestern, hearts heavy with saying goodbye to Jake Anderson.

…

Five hours later,

"Untie the lines, let's go!" shouted Chris as the crew scrambled on the deck.

"You heading out, Captain?" asked Sig over the radio.

Chris smirked and glanced over at Sig from her wheelhouse. He gave her a slight wave and she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah we're heading out, what about you guys?"

"We're right behind you," said Sig, "Well…that is of course until we pick up speed then we'll leave you behind in our wake."

Chris laughed at that, "Ha! We'll see about that Captain Hansen!"

Sig laughed into the radio, "I guess we will. Oh…and Chris? Thanks for coming earlier. I know that was a lot to ask of you, but Griffin really appreciated it."

Chris smiled faintly, "No problem. I'll always be there for him, Sig…and I'll always be there for the Northwestern…always."

Sig smiled in his wheelhouse and glanced away. He was actually glad that he was wrong about her. She had turned out to be more than just a good friend to them…she was now family.

Billy gave a cry of excitement as he tossed the bow line, "Alright Cap'n!" he shouted, "Let's go!"

Chris laughed at her hyper-active deck boss as he climbed around the wheelhouse to go back to the deck. The crew started cheering and high-fiving each other as they started prepping the boat for departure.

"See you on the fishing grounds, Sig," said Chris, throwing the Norwegian captain a challenging smile.

Sig shot her a determined stare, "Oh no…we'll see _you_ on the grounds after we beat you out of the harbor."

Chris returned the challenging stare and held her head up a little higher as she pulled the Hannah Boden away from the Northwestern.

Sig smirked at her uninhibited behavior. The woman wasn't afraid to challenge him in the least. She was tough…that's why she was a Bering Sea captain.

As the Hannah Boden began to pull forward into the harbor, Sig ordered his crew to untie the lines.

"And hurry up too!" he shouted, "We gotta beat them outta here or I'll never hear the end of it!"

The crew laughed as they scrambled to untie the lines.

Meanwhile, the Hannah Boden started to pick up speed. Chris had a wild gleam in her eyes as she glanced behind her to see the Northwestern pulling quickly away from the dock.

"We're gonna beat the Northwestern out of the gate," said Chris into the loud hailer, "What do yall say about that?"

The crew replied with cheers and excited shouts as the boat began to race down the harbor.

Chris opened the window beside of her and closed her eyes as she felt the clean, crisp Bering Sea air rush into the wheelhouse.

She flashed back to when she and Griffin had stayed up late one night in Seattle at her apartment, watching The Perfect Storm. The words of Captain Billy Tyne came back to her…

_The fog's just lifting. Throw off your bow line, throw off your stern. You head out the south channel, past Rocky Neck, and Ten-Pound Island. Past Niles pond where I skated as a kid. Blow your air horn and you throw a wave to the lighthouse keeper's kid on the island. The sun hits ya, and you head North…open up to twelve. Then the birds show up…Black Bats, Herring Gulls. Steaming now. The guys are busy, you're in charge. You know what? You're a sword boat captain! Is there anything better in the world?_

Chris smiled to herself, "Yeah…being a crab boat captain."

Just then, the Northwestern pulled alongside of the Hannah Boden, jolting Chris from her reverie. She gaped in astonishment as Sig threw her a quick wave and a victorious look as the boat steamed past them. She glared back at him with a playful, yet challenging smile on her face. She pushed the throttle forward and her crew started cheering as they felt the boat push forward. Soon, they were side by side with the Northwestern. Both crews were out on their decks, waving and yelling good-natured challenging words to one another.

As the opening to the harbor neared, Chris and Sig exchanged ruthless and wild looks as they pushed their boats to their max speeds. Just as they crossed through, the Hannah Boden's bow gained a good three feet ahead of the Northwestern.

"Woo hoo!" screamed Chris as the boats pulled out of the channel.

The Hannah Boden crew was shouting and screaming their victory down on deck. Chris laughed as she grabbed the radio.

"So Sig…what was that about beating me out of the harbor and leaving me in your wake?"

Sig rolled his eyes and smirked. He knew that this wouldn't be the only time Chris would gloat over this little victory. But deep down he knew he wouldn't have it any other way.

"You win Cotter," he said, realizing the multiple meanings behind those three simple words, "You win…"

Chris smiled as she too understood what Sig was saying. She had been persistent in proving herself to him and she had finally won him and his crew over. The Cotter name was no longer a curse…and for some, it had actually become a blessing.

"So Captain Hansen," said Chris, mischief in her voice, "Want me to draw you a map to the crab again?"

Sig laughed and shook his head. This girl had guts.

"Wanna make a bet?" he asked her, ready to redeem himself.

Chris smirked, "Well that depends."

"On what?"

"On whether or not you're prepared to lose to a girl."

Sig laughed heartily, "Okay Cotter, you're on! First to find the crab wins…hundred bucks."

"Bring it Hansen!" shouted Chris with a laugh as she turned her boat to head towards Bristol Bay.

Sig shook his head, "The crab are North, Cotter."

"That's what you think!"

The boats turned, going their separate ways out onto the crabbing grounds. Their hearts were light and their spirits soared with the wind as they made their way out to do what they did best…

Fishing for the Deadliest Catch.

THE END

PLEASE REVIEW!!

**I hope you guys liked it!! I won't be writing for awhile cause I leave for college on Tuesday. But once I get settled I hope to start another story and write once or twice a week, time permitting. **

**Thanks to all who reviewed!! I appreciate it soooo much!! I LOVE YOU GUYS!!**


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